NFL investigating Saints for placing bounties on players(merged X2)

Ivan · Mar 3, 2012

This is going to end up going beyond the Saints. I don't believe Gregg Williams will be coaching anywhere for at least a year, and quite possibly more.

Joker · Mar 3, 2012

NFL fines Jets $100,000 for assistant coach's tactic

Sal Alosi tripped a Dolphins player during a punt return and ordered five inactive players to form a wall on the sideline to impede opposing players.
December 30, 2010|Wire reports

The NFL fined the New York Jets $100,000 on Thursday for violating league rules when assistant coach Sal Alosi tripped Miami's Nolan Carroll on the sideline during a punt return this month.

The Jets were fined because Alosi "placed players in a prohibited area on the sideline to impede an opposing team's special-teams players and gain a competitive advantage." The NFL called it a competitive violation as well as a dangerous tactic.

Alosi and special-teams coach Mike Westhoff also have been cited for public comments accusing other teams of employing similar tactics.

Westhoff and Coach Rex Ryan denied any knowledge of the tactic, despite some speculation that they both must have known about it.

"I wasn't aware that was going on," Ryan said at the time. "It's easy for me to stand here and tell you that."

The NFL recently met with the team to investigate the incident and spoke with Westhoff about his comments, when he said other teams employ the wall tactic, including the New England Patriots.

"I'm not accusing the Patriots of doing something wrong," Westhoff said. "Maybe they're doing something smart. That's up to you. Watch the tape, you tell me."

yeah...it's all the Saints fault...good thing the pristine sports media is doing such a stellar job of uncovering the truth...OH....WAIT....

quick,get on the roid phone ,jc ....and call up Mike Westhoff...tell him he better start accusing the Patriots of the same thing or else they'll miss their big chance...

Ivan · Mar 3, 2012

If Sal Alosi gets a $100,000 fine for one really stupid moment then I can only imagine what a proportional response to the Saints putting out bounties for injuries for years with management support. The Saints are in really deep sh.t.

Joker · Mar 3, 2012

oh, it WILL be a gigantic sanction, IF it is handed out by Goodell...if the recommendation comes down from the owners at the meeting, I can easily see them softening the blow for the N.O. owner...after all they ARE all members of the same club and he DID get on record stating he was against these bounties and asked his GM to stop the practice.

The point is, the MEDIA isn't about to let anything slide anytime soon and as anyone can see, the early strategy is to tie this revelation to "spygate" in order to generate more hits and create a bigger sensationalistic splash.

Ivan · Mar 3, 2012

Joker said:
oh, it WILL be a gigantic sanction, IF it is handed out by Goodell...if the recommendation comes down from the owners at the meeting, I can easily see them softening the blow for the N.O. owner...after all they ARE all members of the same club and he DID get on record stating he was against these bounties and asked his GM to stop the practice.

The point is, the MEDIA isn't about to let anything slide anytime soon and as anyone can see, the early strategy is to tie this revelation to "spygate" in order to generate more hits and create a bigger sensationalistic splash.

They should soften the blow for Benson if the reports are true that he ordered it to stop and it was actually ignored, otherwise they should hammer him. However even then the team is getting fined for the behavior, his fault or not, and it's the draft where they could really get hammered as that doesn't cost Benson money but punishes Loomis big time. The team is in trouble, they just may go light on Benson himself.

Williams is screwed. Many will come forward with the "old school" argument but he knew that code was long gone and pushed ahead with it anyways.

The media will always sensationalize anything, it's what they do for a living.

QuantumMechanic · Mar 3, 2012

DaBruinz said:
I don't believe there is a salary cap violation because the money was provided by the players themselves and not by the team.

There's a report some money came from Payton's agent (!)

Anyhow, it shouldn't matter. I'll bet the CBA says that money can only come from the teams and anything else is a violation. (It pretty much has to say that or else the cap is crap, to coin a phrase

, because it'd open huge loopholes for circumvention.)

PATRIOTSFANINPA · Mar 3, 2012

Brady_to_Moss said:
What scum...

pherein said:
I can't even believe what I am hearing. Your damn right we tried to hit Farve, Warner and the rest. Our defense was suppose to put them on their ass and not care about what injuries the QB or players got because of it. Their is not a defense in the NFL that does not do the same, we are no different than NE.
If the Patriots defense could have clocked Manning, they would have more than happy to do so, and the fans would have supported it. This is not a very good depiction of what happened.

With all due respect Pherein,remember that playoff game when McCray illegally smacked Farve around,not once but twice and received 2 penalties during the game when he was way too abusive,Favre is an ass but those hits were unnecessarily out of line.

I would think that a player on a Patriots team would never incur 2 illegal hits in one game like McCray did for example.

If McCray didn't collect money from the players pool to pay that fine because he did the job that the pool required and offered,I would be surprised.

QuantumMechanic · Mar 3, 2012

PATRIOTSFANINPA said:
and received 2 penalties during the game when he was way too abusive,Favre is an ass but those hits were unnecessarily out of line.

I would think that a player on a Patriots team would never incur 2 illegal hits in one game like McCray did for example

Actually, it does sound like something Seymour would do.

DarrylS · Mar 3, 2012

Have to question the culpibility of Sean Payton.. he has been staying out of the limelight so far, but isn't a head coach ultimately responsible???

Did that butt wipe Pollard get bonuses for taking out three of our players???

This will create mucho hysteria in the media, and unfortunately the Saints Fans who really love their team will pay the price of being embarassed by these actions..

PATRIOTSFANINPA · Mar 3, 2012

I can't imagine the horror of being a fan on a team that is all but eliminated from consideration of a SB Title for the 2012/13 season in Early March!

At this point,there is no way IMO that this will not destroy the Saints chances this upcoming season....The Colts or Browns have a Better chance to win it all before the Saints do...I don't care what type of offense they have,this team will not recover anytime soon from this debacle.

This team is not the Patriots on a revenge tour like in 2007....this is their own doing within.

BritPat · Mar 3, 2012

I find it a real shame that such a classy organisation has let this happen. Tom Benson is one of the best owners in the league and by all accounts a Kraft-like figure in his demeanour and benevolence, but he's been badly let down. I really really respected Sean Payton, very classy guy, but this leaves a sour taste in the mouth.

A real shame.

dizi24 · Mar 3, 2012

Going on the assumption that most teams "cheat" or try tot a "competitive advantage," I'm surprised more stuff like this doesn't come out. With the way coaches constantly change around the league and players moving through FA, you'd think a team secrets wouldn't be all that safe.

I guess there's the whole "ratting" stigma and probably the fact that you don't want your own secrets coming out. But if you played/coached under the Saints when this went on and switched to another team, and then you saw the Saints taking cheap shots at your QB, wouldn't there be a little incentive to speak out?

RobertWeathers · Mar 3, 2012

DarrylS said:
John Clayton, cannot figure out how he rose to such prominence, is now officially declaring that this is worse than spygate... as "no one got hurt except teams lost close games".. where the f.. did that come from. It is one of those if you repeat a lie often enough it becomes the truth..

John Clayton is perhaps the most overrated sports journalist of our time. If it wasn't for ESPN he'd still be a beatwriter for the Seahawks. However if he is trying to convey how big of a story it is from the media's perspective, I would tend to agree. It's pretty big stuff.

The Pats broke rules that were already being broken by everyone else that had zero impact on a game and the situation was completely blown out of proportion by a commissioner who was PO'd that BB did not acquiesce to his Draconian approach to running the league. Another team broke rules that were already being broken with the sole intent of maiming players with the desired outcome in gaining an in-game competitive advantage.

This kind of goings-on is not new as it's been going on for decades. However with the emphasis on preventing head injuries and protecting star players from overly-aggressive play, I expect the Saints to pay dearly.

If they don't, that also would be completely unacceptable.

bucky · Mar 3, 2012

PatsSox363804 said:
It's like I said earlier. Some players will defend this because they engaged in similar actions

Unfortunately, this is how the NFL is these days. When Brandon Merriweather came into the league, he actually tried to play the ball. But his last 2 years, he was basically head hunting out there at safety. I'm glad BB got rid of him. But the bigger point here is that the NFL has a great opportunity to make a statement to every defensive coach and player that head hunting is not the desired way to play the game. This is Goodell's big chance to change the game for the better. I hope he doesn't screw it up be being too lenient. I really hope there are severe punishments for coaches as well as players.

Fixit · Mar 3, 2012

Anyone who's using the relatively small amounts of the bounties as some sort of defense apparently has never made a bet in their lives. Most of the time, it's not about what you win, it's about being able to collect the winnings. It's about bragging rights. I won a $10 bet the other day and gave the money to a dude who was short on cash. The winning was all I cared about.

The players are always going to hit hard, but the bounty will make them far more likely to hit a little higher, hold on a little longer, or twist something a little more.

strongside · Mar 3, 2012

This group bounty stuff is crap. I would rather go back to the 80's when you just wrote a hit list on your towel.

Jim McMahon body slammed by Charles Martin Bears Packers 1986 - YouTube

Uncle Rico · Mar 3, 2012

PATRIOTSFANINPA said:
I can't imagine the horror of being a fan on a team that is all but eliminated from consideration of a SB Title for the ... season in Early March!
...

Heh -- Longtime Patriots fans have been there, done that. Often.

NEGoldenAge · Mar 3, 2012

pherein said:
I can't even believe what I am hearing. Your damn right we tried to hit Farve, Warner and the rest. Our defense was suppose to put them on their ass and not care about what injuries the QB or players got because of it. Their is not a defense in the NFL that does not do the same, we are no different than NE.
If the Patriots defense could have clocked Manning, they would have more than happy to do so, and the fans would have supported it. This is not a very good depiction of what happened.

There is a line between playing hard and playing dirty. When incentives are given for getting someone carted off the field, that line was crossed. Not every player would disregard someone's health and well being like that.

I hold no malice towards the Saints as an organization. I consider their fan base among the classiest in the league and you have one of the best owners in the league as well. That said, this is a pretty big deal and warrants signficant punishment. Not just for the Saints, but for coaches and players, many of whom are on other teams. Make no mistake, this is a big deal.

I feel bad for the owner and the fan base. The media is going to blow this out of proportion and this will be talked about for years. There is a silver lining though. Teams will crack down on any bounty systems and the practice will virtually disappear in the NFL.

vyrago · Mar 3, 2012

jcdavey said:
if reports about intent to injure are true, it should.

Unfortunately, I don't think any scandal or infraction will cause amnesia about spygate--a silly brouhaha about taking pictures. Spygate involved the Patriots and their Dr. Evil, BB. Idiot Commish Baddell ginned that little todo up so high, that the outrage won't come down till BB is no longer HC of The NEP.
Payton's charm and eloquence will help him out here. He'll review tapes of BB's reaction to Spygate and learn from them what not to do.

NEGoldenAge · Mar 3, 2012

PATRIOTSFANINPA said:
They are saying that the Owner's Meeting in later this month will discuss the punishment for this activity.

Apparently it is going to be handed down by the league between Early April and Draft Day.

That's a neat little double standard. Goodell hands out the Pat's punishment ASAP. This punishment will be delibertated by the owners. Either it is going to be huge, or the "commissioner" Goodel doesn't want to be seen handing out the lighter penalty himself. It is amazing that they are just going to let this sit out there until mid-April without a punishment being handed out. I hate double standards.

NFL investigating Saints for placing bounties on players(merged X2)

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