NFL: Quarterback Brad Johnson Confesses to Tampering Balls at Super Bowl XXXVII

The former quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brad Johnson admitted to cheating in Super Bowl XXXVII. Johnson revealed that he had paid a bribe to get people to tamper with the footballs in the championship game that the Buccaneers won against the Raiders.

The Tampa Bay Times wrote: "At the Super Bowl, the NFL had 100 footballs. They were new, slick and supposedly under the league's watchful eye. But not leaving anything to chance, Johnson made sure the balls were scuffed and ready well before the Dixie Chicks sang the national anthem."

"I paid some guys off to get the balls right," Johnson revealed. "I went and got all 100 footballs, and they took care of all of them."

Johnson stated that he paid $7,500 to some people to scruff up the balls, making them easier to grip. In the previous game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Johnson had difficulty gripping the ball.

The head coach at that time, Jon Gruden, stated on ESPN Radio that he remembered Johnson's concerns over getting a good grip on the ball. Gruden did not state whether or not he was aware of the fact that Johnson had cheated in order to get the advantage.

Johnson finished that night completing 18 of his 34 passes for 215 yards. He threw two touchdowns and one interception, beating the Raiders 48-21. The Raider quarterback, Rich Gannon threw five interceptions.

The Tampa Bay Times added, "Johnson made the revelation several years ago, prior to the 10-year reunion of the Bucs' Super Bowl champion team." The story resurfaced at around the same time that the league started its investigation into the New England Patriots.

The NFL is currently investigating the New England Patriots for using deflated balls. The investigation revealed today that 11 of the 12 game balls that were used only by the Patriots were not fully inflated according to the league's standards. The league is now investigating how these balls became deflated.

The one major difference between the two cases is that in Johnson's case, all 100 balls that both teams used were tampered with. In the Patriots' case, the altered balls were only used by the Patriots' offense.

The league has not announced whether or not they will investigate Johnson's claims.