Quote:
Originally Posted by DZ
Can't wait for the rest of the story. Just the fact that there is even a rule about ball pressure in the NFL Rule book means that ball pressure deviation has always been a common practice over the years. I'm betting that at one time every team did it based on weather conditions/personal preference. It was probably a rule that no one really cared about and was probably not a big deal because each team uses their own balls. I was researching this a little and found that underinflated balls are harder to throw and catch, but easier to grip.
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As I understand it, it goes back to the days of Al Davis in Oakland. He was "alleged" to provide dead balls to the visiting team. He was also accused of having balls partially filled with helium to assist his world class punter, Ray Guy, who is the only punter in the HoF (well, the only pure punter, anyway).