An ESPN report surfaced Tuesday accusing the New England Patriots of stealing confidential game plans from opposing teams.

The report, which follows the “spygate” scandal of 2007 and most recently “deflategate,” is the latest in a string of allegations against New England.

“Many former New England coaches and employees insist that the taping of signals wasn’t even the most effective cheating method the Patriots deployed in that era,” the ESPN report read. “Several of them acknowledge that during pregame warm-ups, a low-level Patriots employee would sneak into the visiting locker room and steal the play sheet, listing the first 20 or so scripted calls for the opposing team’s offense.”

The piece brings into question the integrity of the NFL’s competition over the last decade and further criticizes NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. One owner, who elected to remain anonymous, called Goodell’s handing of deflategate a “makeup call” for Goodell’s vastly-criticized handling of spygate.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady’s suspension of four games for his role in deflategate, or Goodell’s alleged “makeup call,” was revoked by a judge on Sep. 3 after a review of the case.

Ben Volin, of the Boston Globe, said deflategate “wasn’t about deflated footballs. It was about punishing the Patriots once and for all.”

While the debate lingers as to how much deflating a football can impact the outcome of a game, one NFL player said it’s mostly irrelevant.

“Everybody does their things a little differently, but at the end of the day, it’s handled between the lines,” Seattle Seahawks Cornerback Richard Sherman told ESPN.com. “And if they man up and they beat you straight up, they beat you straight up. You can say they knew your plays or they watched this or they watched that, but a lot of times if you watch film good enough, you find good indicators.”

Bill Simmons, an ex-ESPN employee, offered his thoughts on ESPN’s report via twitter shortly after.

“Agree [with the] theory that Goodell’s DeflateGate botching was a crazed overreaction to his bizarre Spygate performance,” Simmons tweeted. “But… Not sure what to make of the sour grapes stuff. Sure seems like everyone who ever lost to 2001–07 Pats now has a built-in excuse for failure.”

A common reaction among players like Sherman and commentators like Simmons suggests that most can agree the Patriots — by definition — cheated, however the actual impact of the Patriots tactics may be overblown.

CBS broadcaster Kevin Harlan said the practice of sifting through opposing team’s trash for valuable information has been common practice in the NFL.

“It’s been going on for years. You know some now have admitted? John Madden admitted it the other day,” Harlan said on 105.3 The Fan.

Goodell has stood behind his decision to suspend Brady, citing the league’s effort to maintain the integrity of the game.

“We will appeal today’s ruling in order to uphold the collectively bargained responsibility to protect the integrity of the game,” Goodell said in an official statement. “The commissioner’s responsibility to secure the competitive fairness of our game is a paramount principle, and the league and our 32 clubs will continue to pursue a path to that end.”