I think this was a good move by the league. The Pats were not cheating, but they were taking advantage of a loophole in the rules. The Ravens have a legitimate beef about they way the officials handled it in their playoff game. Apparently, the refs just let the Pats line up in all these odd formations and go, giving the Ravens little time to adjust.
It doesnt matter. The Patriots are the cream of the crop in the NFL and will continue to be smarter than most other teams.
It's not about cheating, but it makes the game less enjoyable to watch - kind of like hack-a-Shaq in the NBA. It will get annoying to watch, even though it was legal.
The Pats tried that "trick" formation other times during the regular- & post-season and were mostly unsuccessful. Sounds like the Ravens were just unprepared. Maybe the league should also ban trick plays where the punter throws a pass because some team isn't ready for it.
Well, a punter passing the ball IS a trick play. When an offense lines guys inside the middle you don't expect them to be going out for a pass. You expect them to block. It's good the NFL took this crappy play away from the Brady Bunch.
When the punter takes the snap, the defense isn't expecting him to pass the ball. Maybe you want the league to ban passes by punters too?