The National Football League is planning to have additional security surrounding the Super Bowl footballs, according to Kevin Seifert of ESPN. This move should not come as a surprise to anybody following the league the past two weeks after DeflateGate took over the headlines.
Super Bowl 2015: Additional security planned for game footballs
The NFL is not taking any chances with the footballs for the Super Bowl, especially with New England around the building.
The NFL has tabbed the Chicago Bears' equipment staff to keep the balls with them, but vice president of officiating Dean Blandino has said there will be extra security measures put in place. Each team will use 54 balls instead of the normal amount of 12, due to the selling and donating footballs from the Super Bowl. The balls will remain with Tony Medlin of the Bears' staff from Friday until Sunday, when they are inspected by referee Bill Vinovich.
Blandino also clarified that the officiating was not part of the investigation of DeflateGate, and that referee Walt Anderson "properly tested" equipment used in the AFC Championship between the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts.
“My major concern is did we follow proper protocol?” Blandino said. “Everything was properly tested and marked before the game. Walt gauged the footballs himself; it is something he has done throughout his career.
Additionally, Blandino says the NFL will be looking at how the footballs are treated before the games, specifically that the league does not log the original PSI numbers. The PSI has to be within the range of 12.5-13.5.
Blandino also touched on a variety of other topics during his news conference. He stated that both he and NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent will attempt to streamline the rule book when the season concludes. Blandino also said there has been ample talk about expanding the use of replay, something fans have been begging for.
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