Oooops, my bad!

Let's just get this out of the way right from the get-go.

THERE HAVE BEEN PLENTY OF TIMES THAT I'VE SCREWED UP AT WORK!!!

So, I'm not going to take a holier-than-thou approach, but it looks like The Boston Herald's John Thomase has screwed up big time.

If you don't remember, it was Thomase who broke the story on February 2 (the day before the Super Bowl) informing the world that a source told him that former Patriots assistant Matt Walsh had tapes of the Patriots (specifically Walsh) filming the walkthrough of the St. Louis Rams, prior to Super Bowl 39.

It was believed all along that the source in question for the story was Walsh, but it turns out that's not the case.

Walsh's attorney Michael Levy told the New York Times on Wednesday,

“Mr. Walsh has never claimed to have a tape of the walk-through,” Levy told the Times in a telephone interview. “Mr. Walsh has never been the source of any of the media speculation about such a tape. Mr. Walsh was not the source for the Feb. 2 Boston Herald article.”

Also, of the eight tapes that Walsh turned over to the NFL commissioner Roger Goodwell there was not a tape of the Rams walkthrough prior to the Super Bowl. Levy told the Times that Walsh does not have a tape of the walkthrough.

Sort of shoots down the validity of Tomase's article - doesn't it? It's one thing if I screw up at work, not many people will know about it.

You come out with an exclusive article the day before the Patriots are attempting to put the finishing touches on an undefeated season with a victory in the Super Bowl, and it turns out that the basis for your entire piece (that the Patriots cheated before the 2002 Super Bowl) is false, you are in a world of shit.

If writing an article and having it appear (incorrectly) wasn't big enough of an issue, this is what has come about as a result of it.

A re-opening of the Spygate investigation by the NFL.

A separate investigation spearheaded by US Senator Arlen Spector.

Months of negotiations between Walsh and the NFL, resulting in Walsh turning over the eight tapes that he does have (of the Patriots videotaping opposing coaches signals, which is what they've admitted to in the past).

A perception by the public (at least outside of New England) that the New England Patriots needed to cheat to win the 2002 Super Bowl.

I'm guessing Tomase's a little gun shy in answering the phone today, doing a double take when looking at his caller ID, making sure it's not anyone from the offices of the Boston Herald calling. Not that Tomase's alone in all of this (how about the editor of the story and the Sports Editor of the Herald not raising a red flag), but it's his name on the article.