ShareThisIn the wake of recent "Spygate" charges against the New England Patriots and the controversy surrounding the NFL'S destruction of evidence in the case, Broncos coach Mike Shanahan has vigorously denied an Internet report he hired someone to videotape San Diego Chargers practices.Through his attorney, Shanahan has demanded in recent days a retraction and apology from the Web site that posted the report in September.A one-paragraph portion of a story posted Sept. 13 on Yahoo Sports -- it has been referenced in area media outlets the past two weeks -- said the Chargers hired extra security "several years ago" to post on a hill adjacent to the team's practice complex in weeks leading to games against the Broncos.The story added the security personnel were hired because "Broncos coach Mike Shanahan had been hiring spies to videotape Chargers practices." The story also said the NFL had been aware of the videotaping, that a league official had seen one of the tapes and no action was taken because the NFL had considered the matter "a team issue."In a letter addressed to Yahoo senior NFL writer Jason Cole and sent to the company's corporate headquarters in Sunnyvale, Calif., Shanahan's attorney, Harvey Steinberg, of Denver, called the paragraph regarding Shanahan in the original story "completely untrue and without foundation."Copies of the letter also were sent to Yahoo CEO Jerry Wang, president Susan Decker, co- founder David Filo and executive vice president and general counsel Michael J. Callahan.The letter goes on to say "Coach Shanahan has never engaged in any such practice, let alone even discussed the possibility of any such activities. As a result, this article is defamatory and libelous."The letter also asserts Shanahan was not contacted to comment on the story before it was published, which was "in our mind, evidence of either actual malice towards coach Shanahan or reckless disregard for the truth."The Broncos said Monday that Shanahan would refer to the letter as his public response to the story.The letter also states the NFL has told Shanahan and his representatives the league never was made aware of any "alleged spying" on Chargers practices or of the existence of any videotape.The league also is said to have denied any league official has seen the videotape referenced in the story.Asked Monday about the original Yahoo story, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in a statement: "We were aware of no such thing. The report is bogus and does not cite any sources for the erroneous information."Cole said Monday he had not seen the letter and referred comment to Yahoo Sports executive editor Dave Morgan. Morgan said he had seen the letter but could not comment at this time.The reference to Shanahan in the original Yahoo story was in the eighth paragraph of a larger story quoting Hall of Fame Dolphins center Jim Langer about the lengths he believed teams would go to gain an advantage. The story also included references to Raiders owner Al Davis.(Contact Jeff Legwold of the Rocky Mountain News at www.rockymountainnews.com.)
Shanahan denies spying allegation
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