Bill Walsh Once Sabotaged His Own Sideline To Try To Gain An Edge

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – There is the saying that if you are not cheating you are not trying. That sentiment is true and not true. Sometimes is a bending of the rules which can be seen as cheating. Tom Brady deflating footballs is against the rules but what about stealing signs when they occur in plain sight on the field.

Is the latter cheating? Most say no as long as there is not technology used to steal those signs. There is also the art of massaging the rules like faking an injury or substituting at the last possible second to force the offense to wait.

KSL Sports’ Alex Kirry is fine with some cheating but not others and the main sticking point is the performance-enhancing drugs.

“It makes the game fun and I am okay with some guys cheating,” Kirry said. “The drugs, I am not down with. When pitchers scuff the ball and then the umpire goes out there and sees what is under the hat, I love that.”

Getting caught cheating sometimes is the best part by seeing the reaction from the player getting questioned by the official. One of the most iconic scenes of a player getting upset is when George Brett was thrown out of a game for having too much pine tar on his bat when the Kansas City Royals were playing the New York Yankees.

Today in 1983, George Brett is called out after hitting a homer at Yankee Stadium for having too much pine tar on his bat. He wasn't happy. pic.twitter.com/R0H3Da8aSl

— Super 70s Sports (@Super70sSports) July 24, 2018

Coaches Are The Biggest Cheaters

KSL Sports’ Scott Mitchell has a few stories about some legendary NFL coaches that include Bill Walsh and Bill Parcels. One rumor comes from the latter coach which allegedly saw Parcels would open one side of the doors at the end of Meadowlands Stadium.

This was an attempt to manipulate a throw or a pass and the wind would change because with the door open it would create a small wind tunnel. Was it true, not sure? However, Mitchell knows that a lot of coaches try to find an advantage which some may say is cheating.

“None of these coaches are without guile,” Mitchell said. “Bill Walsh in 1985 sabotaged his own headsets on his sideline to gain an advantage. This is a brilliant move. If one sideline didn’t have headsets then the other team can not use their headsets.

“All of the plays get called in from the box above the stadium,” Mitchell continued. “Walsh had a script — he was the first to map out the first 15 plays of the game — so he didn’t need headsets and memorized the plays. He felt like he would have an advantage because he was not going to miss out. Did he win that game? No, they lost 17-3, when trying this move.”

Hurting yourself to create an advantage?

Here is one @19scottmitchell says Hall of Fame head coach Bill Wash used to do to help his team. pic.twitter.com/qF2uc3VeIO

— KSL Unrivaled (@KSLunrivaled) May 7, 2020

Basically, everyone tries to find some sort of advantage and push the rules as much as possible to get that win. Some are very creative like Walsh sabotaging his own well-being to attempt hurt the other team and others are well beyond like corking a bat or scuffing the baseball to find that edge for a win. It only works if you don’t get caught, but getting busted cheating doesn’t seem to stop anyone.