[DoodleDawg]

The source told Kravitz that officials took a ball out of play at one point and weighed it.

How is a improperly inflated ball going to weigh less than a properly inflated ball since air is weightless?

[Cboldt]

Air, even at the same pressure as the environment it is in, isn't weightless - and compressed air weighs more than non-compressed air.

I don't think weighing the ball is the most accurate way to determine the pressure of air in it, but theoretically, the method will work.

[Cboldt]

Just thinking out loud, maybe the (or another) suspicion was that the ball was not regulation weight (a separate consideration from how much air is in it). Regulation football has size, weight, and pressure limits.

[Squawk 8888]

Air has mass, just like all matter. Compressed air at a given volume weighs more than uncompressed air at the same volume.

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

Air is not weightless. It.has mass

[MarineBrat]

I don’t think the issue is the weight of the ball, but the fact that the surface of the ball would be softer... easier to grip.

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

It takes about 5 grams (about 1/6 of an ounce) of air to inflate a football to 13 psi, about the same weight as a tablespoon of water. A partially deflated ball will be one or two grams (a teaspoon of water) lighter. However, an offical football weighs between 410-450 grams (0.90 to 0.99 pounds). You cannot tell the difference between a fully and partially inflated football by weighing it.

[Delta Dawn]

ok, ok, ok...I know that I am getting old end everything and that I just recently found out that Linda Ronstadt is no longer hot...but I thought that the officials took custody of the game balls 24 hours before game time to preclude something funny being done to the balls...I thought that this was done to prevent another, Son of Flubber incident...

[Royal Wulff]

If the guy knew the difference between pressure and weight he probably wouldn’t be a sports reporter.