Saints paid players to hurt foes

[Musky Buck]

That # 10 kicked our. He scored all 3 TD's for them. 18-14 loss for us. Good news is we stuffed him on all 3 two point tries. He got a banged up wrist and once off their D we connected on a 80 yard td pass, he came back in and we couldn't move the ball at all. I should've started a bounty program lol. jk. Our other TD came on a kick return with no #10 on it. It isn't fair chase in my eyes to purposefully take a guy out so you (me) we can win. I was proud of our team, he is a beast and we held him down some anyway. This Saints thing is getting a bit stale, they are falling apart some, I'm curious to see Vikes 49'ers.

[LMITOUT]

Quote:

Favre: NFL’s evidence Saints had a bounty on me “just hearsay”

As Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma continues to fight his yearlong suspension for his alleged involvement in the Saints’ bounty program, he has found an unlikely alley in the player he supposedly offered teammates $10,000 to knock out of the NFC Championship Game.

Brett Favre says that even if former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams confirmed that Vilma put a bounty on Favre, that’s not enough evidence to take away a full season of a player’s career. And so Favre says he was glad when the courts ordered Vilma and the other three suspended players to be reinstated while seeking a fuller explanation of their suspensions from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

“In all honesty I’m pretty indifferent,” Favre said of the bounty case in an interview with Mike Tirico of ESPN. “But I’d have to say when they were allowed to play, I thought that was the right move, because I don’t see enough evidence. I don’t think ‘Some guy said that this went on’ is enough evidence. I don’t know Jonathan all that well. I think he’s a great player. Seems like a great leader. Seems like the guys who have played with him have a lot of respect for him, and Scott Fujita. The other guys I really don’t know. I felt like that’s the right thing to do. Otherwise, I think it’s just hearsay.”

It's just hearsay...and a lot of whining and bitterness from Viking Fan.

Get over it. They aren't giving you the trophy.

[flipper]

I'm curious to see Vikes 49'ers.

I'll probably just watch the highlights. It will be about as much fun for the Vikes as Little Bighorn was for Custer.

[westb]

It's just hearsay...and a lot of whining and bitterness from Viking Fan.

Get over it. They aren't giving you the trophy.

[LMITOUT]

I think the bounty thing is complete bunk so I could care less if there were/are other teams allegedly doing it, or the Vikings in your VERY hypothetical example of them winning the Super Bowl.

[westb]

I think the bounty thing is complete bunk so I could care less if there were/are other teams allegedly doing it, or the Vikings in your VERY hypothetical example of them winning the Super Bowl.

Yes I know it is a Very hypothetical example but all I was wondering is if You would consider the season legit or would you say the Vikings had to cheat to win. Simple yes or no answer. Yes legit. No they cheated. BTW I feel the same way about the bounty scandle as you.

[LMITOUT]

I answered the question in my last post.

I said I could care less because the bounty thing is bunk, regardless of the team.

[rundrave]

The cover up was worse than the crime. The commish made an example out of them after they failed to comply. End of story.......

[Spike76]

The refs should have been suspended after that game for not calling the penalties properly. The replacement refs probably would have made the right calls.

[Scott M]

Associated Press

ESPN News

Dec. 3, 2012

NEW ORLEANS -- Hearings in the NFL bounty probe of the Saints have resumed with witness appearances by former Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress, Saints assistant head coach Joe Vitt and linebacker Jonathan Vilma.

Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue has been appointed to oversee the hearings, which he has scheduled to conclude in New Orleans by Tuesday. There were also several days of witness appearances in Washington, D.C., last week.

Saints Bounty Scandal

An NFL investigation found the New Orleans Saints operated a bounty system that rewarded 22 to 27 players for hard hits and for injuring opposing players. Profile »

As Childress left the downtown law office on Monday he said he had "nothing to add" after his appearance.

Tagliabue has informed attorneys representing all parties that he hopes to rule on the appeals of Vilma, Saints defensive end Will Smith and two other players shortly after the hearings conclude.

Tagliabue also has requested strict confidentiality by those involved.

Vilma offered a wave and a thumbs-up sign as walked into the building. Vitt only joked to several reporters that he sees them "in his dreams" and that they should be at Saints' practice instead of the law office.

Smith, suspended four games, and Vilma, suspended for the entire current season, have been allowed back on the field while their appeals are pending.

Two former New Orleans players also were banned: Cleveland Browns linebacker Scott Fujita had his suspension reduced to one game, while free-agent defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove has not played in the NFL this season but faces a two-game suspension if he signs with a team.

The NFL has described Vilma and Smith as ringleaders -- and former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams as being in charge -- of a performance pool designed to knock targeted opponents out of games from 2009 to 2011.

The league has sworn statements from Williams and former Saints assistant coach Mike Cerullo -- who testified last week -- saying Vilma offered $10,000 to anyone who knocked quarterback Brett Favre out of the 2010 NFC championship game.

Childress had informed the NFL after that game he'd heard from former player Jimmy Kennedy that the Saints had a bounty on Favre. Childress is currently the Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator.

The NFL also has identified Kennedy as one of its witnesses, but Kennedy has said the league is lying about his statements. He added that the league irreparably damaged his reputation by its "shoddy, careless, shameful so-called investigation."

According to the NFL, Kennedy heard about the bounty from Hargrove, who has also denied knowledge of a bounty program.

Tagliabue has insisted that the contents of the appeals process remain private, and all of the hearings have been behind closed doors in private law offices.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell issued the initial suspensions, which also included a full-season ban for Saints head coach Sean Payton.

Lawsuits brought by Vilma and the NFL Players Association to challenge Goodell's handling of the case, including his decision in October to appoint Tagliabue as the arbitrator for the appeals, are pending in federal court in New Orleans.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan gave the parties until Monday to answer questions about whether the NFL's collective bargaining agreement prevents a commissioner from handing out discipline for legal contact, and whether the CBA's passages about detrimental conduct are "ambiguous, hence unenforceable."

In March, the NFL announced that its investigation showed the Saints put together a bounty pool of up to $50,000 to reward game-ending injuries inflicted on opponents. "Knockouts" were worth $1,500 and "cart-offs" $1,000 -- with payments doubled or tripled for the playoffs, the league said.

According to the league, the pay-for-pain program was administered by Williams, with Payton's knowledge. At the time, Williams apologized for his role, saying: "It was a terrible mistake, and we knew it was wrong while we were doing it."

Later that month, Payton became the first head coach suspended by the league for any reason -- banned for all of this season without pay -- and Williams was suspended indefinitely.

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Chilly: "I ahhhhh, just thought, ahhhh, that, ahhhhh....it was more of ahhhh, a stream of consciousness...ahhhh."