Why didn’t the refs who handled the balls ON EVER PLAY notice this, if it was so flagrant and noticeable?
I think the best explanation for this is the pressure with which the ball is gripped. Players are squeezing and hanging on to it for dear life. Refs are just resting the ball in their palms with probably minimal pressure with their fingers.
It’s worth considering that football players are enormously strong and players that handle the ball have hand strength far greater than an average male. Someone with average hand strength probably couldn’t feel any difference between a ball inflated to 10.5 PSI and one inflated to 13.5 PSI because in either case it would feel hard as a rock.
I would figure the refs may think they are wrong, they aren’t actually playing the game.
The truth is that the Patriots won the game, that is not the problem. The problem is that the Patriots have been known to cheat and this is just one more complaint that is backed with proof.
The outcome would have been a Patriots win, but why do they always have to act unethically when it really is not necessary?