The league announced that Scott Fujita, Anthony Hargrove, Will Smith and Jonathan Vilma were suspended without pay for varying lengths of time. He also said that he discussed the issue with several players from his era, and they unanimously agreed that players who put bounties on opponents were "cowards. Then the coach reminded the players to target specific injuries on 49ers: "We need to find out in the first two series of the game," Williams said, "that little wide receiver, number 10, about his . Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Devin White said that Bucs players bet on which player will have the biggest game, which reminded Saints fans of BountyGate. 1990-92: Houston Oilers - Defensive Quality Control Coach [89], The revelation of Williams' pregame speech was also greeted with revulsion. In some cases, particular players on the opposing team were targeted, the NFL said. Payton and Loomis also apologized to Benson and the Saints fans, and promised that such behavior would never happen again. Instead, he said what some of the evidence was, and the media went to town taking his word for it. 2023 Cable News Network. One of the things was it was on my watch, but there was nothing that hasnt been done in the last 50 years in the sport and there was nothing done to try to hurt somebody, Williams continued. Quarterback Jay Cutler was sacked six times, and nearly lost his voice when a Saints player kicked him in the throat. The Saints had . Tuesday, 29 January 2013 By Griffin Finan. Multiple independent sources also confirmed that Vilma offered a specific bounty $10,000 in cash to any player who knocked Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner out of the 2009 Divisional Playoff Game and later pledged the same amount to anyone who knocked Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre out of the 2009 NFC Championship Game the following week, the statement said. NEW YORK -- New Orleans Saints players and at least one assistant coach maintained a bounty pool of up to $50,000 the last three seasons to reward game-ending injuries inflicted on opposing . Late in the 2011 season, the NFL received what it called "significant and credible new information" that suggested there was indeed a "bounty" program in place. He called for Goodell to ban him from the league for life. Jack Willis has again left England's training camp early and is set to answer a back-row crisis for Toulouse, giving Steve Borthwick a sizeable selection headache before his side host France on . The league has not yet announced any disciplinary action against the players involved. "Seven people testified, 2 sworn affidavits all saying the same thing. Ive said this before, I take a look at all these high school programs, little league programs, college programs and you see the decals on the side of the helmet and you wonder, you get those decals because you shake hands and kiss after the game or you get those decals because you rushed for 100 and you threw 17 touchdown passes and you knocked the stuffing out of somebody? But I would be shocked, that'll be something that gets tucked away or under the . 2:34 pm ET, would vacate the suspensions of those Saints' players on appeal, Agent's Take: Rodgers' trade value, logistics, best fit, McCarthy discusses taking over Cowboys' play-calling, Brett Favre welfare funds scandal explained, Reich says Carr 'checks a lot of boxes' after meeting, Gregg Williams on Bountygate: It was 'nothing that hadn't been done before', Mock: Carter falls amid warrant, Ravens take QB, Rodgers' trade value, logistics and best fit, Best team fits for top FAs at each position, Ex-NFL GM on ramifications of Carter's legal issue, NFLPA issues team report cards: Commanders fail, 49ers GM says he contacted Brady as team seeks QB help, Jalen Carter issues statement amid charges. [29], In June 2012, the league revealed that it possessed a ledger detailing the weekly earnings of the players, which are earned for cart-offs ($1000) and "whacks" ($400) and deducted for "mental errors. The Vikings were particularly angered when Saints defensive end Bobby McCray and defensive tackle Remi Ayodele knocked Favre to the ground with a high-low hit. Given what he did for the Saints, Sean Payton may be worth the wait for the Cowboys. [80] On December 11, with three games left in the regular season, Tagliabue vacated the players' suspensions, saying in his ruling, "I affirm Commissioner Goodell's factual findings as to the four players. [34] Chicago Tribune NFL analyst Matt Bowen, who played for the Redskins at the time, later wrote in one of his regular columns that the bounty pool was funded by fines for mistakes made during practice and in games, and insisted similar systems operated on other teams. The behavior detailed in the report was almost universally condemned in the press. In that same email, Ornstein offered $5,000 to anyone who knocked Rodgers out of the 2011 season opener. [19] Later that day, the NFL announced it had obtained irrefutable proof of a bounty pool dating back to the 2009 season, based on a review of 18,000 documents. With New Orleans coach Sean Payton appealing his year-long suspension to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, a hearing that will occur Tuesday, there are other worries for those who were involved with the Saints bounty program.True legal worries, perhaps. Williams said that he knew all along the slush fund broke the rules, and that "I should have stopped it" rather than get further involved. Kevin James stars in Netflix's 'Home Team', the movie inspired by Sean Payton and his "Bountygate" suspension. [20][27], Several Chicago Bears players and fans believe that the Bears were targets of this program during the second game of the 2011 season, a 3013 loss to the Saints. The league discovered that anywhere between 22 and 27 Saints players were involved, and that head coach Sean Payton was both aware and involved in the program's cover-up. Published Feb 9, 2022. He also appeared to put a bounty on quarterback Alex Smith; according to Pamphilon, after Williams told his men to hit Smith in the chin, "then he rubs his thumb against his index and middle fingers the cash sign and says, I got the first one. [7][12], Benson issued a statement on the Saints' Website saying, "I have been made aware of the NFLs findings relative to the Bounty Rule and how it relates to our club. "This is something that is being handled by the NFL office . An estimated 22-27 total New Orleans Saints players participated in the bounty program, though. "Knockouts" were worth. [35] On March 4, The Post reported that the NFL was investigating the allegations against Williams with the Redskins. However, depending on the Saints' cooperation and that of the individuals involved, Goodell could restore the Saints' second-round pick in 2013 (though the Saints would still lose a lower-round pick), as well as reduce the fine on the Saints and restore Payton, Vitt and Loomis' lost pay. Vilma, a linebacker who is still with the Saints, got suspended for a year, and teammate Smith, a defensive end, got a four-game suspension. Fujita, who left the team for the Browns immediately after the Saints won Super Bowl XLIV, pledged "a significant amount of money" into the bounty program. The appeal delayed the start of Payton's suspension from April 1 to April 16. So today's legal victory for four players whom Goodell suspended for their role in the New Orleans Saints' Bountygate affair is particularly satisfying no matter how fleeting and temporary it may be. [52] Three days later, Drew Brees, the starting quarterback for the Saints, issued a statement denying any knowledge of or involvement in the program. He cited a 1977 case in which Denver Broncos defensive back Dale Hackbart sued the Cincinnati Bengals for a late hit to the back by running back Boobie Clark that fractured three vertebrae four years earlier and ended his career. [8], After the sanctions were announced, CBSSports.com's Gregg Doyel wrote that the severity of the punishments handed down to Williams, Payton and Loomis proved that Goodell was truly sincere in his desire to "take the thuggishness out of the NFL." [50] Louisiana State University law professor William Corbett told Fox Sports that any legal action by players has a chance of succeeding. PFF reports that former Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy has zeroed in on the play that he believes caused the injury, and it involves a matchup against a defense led by Gregg Williams. I. "[87], Kevin Seifert, who blogs on the NFC North for ESPN.com, wrote that neither he nor most Vikings fans were surprised at the discovery of the bounty program. [26] The NFL found no club money had been used to fund the bounty pool, and praised Benson for doing what he could to shut down the slush fund. It also contended that since the alleged conduct took place before the most recent CBA was signed in August, Goodell should have deferred to NFL special master Stephen Burbank in ruling on the players' actions. I am truly sorry. Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was suspended by the NFL for the 2012 season for his role in the Saints bounty scandal, when he was the defensive coordinator there. Yes, Bountygate is a real scandal that emerged in 2012. Being the first NFL coach to ever be suspended for any reason, some believe Home Team glosses over the controversial Bountygate scandal too lightly. Seifert argued that even before the findings were revealed, it was obvious that the Saints were determined to inflict a severe beating on Favre, even if it meant breaking the rules. "[30][31], However, on July 26, 2012, Vilma and seven witnesses from the Saints testified in front of a federal judge in New Orleans that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell got his facts wrong in the bounty scandal. Comedy Sport New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton coaches his son's 6th-grade football team while he is being suspended for the entire 2012 season as a result of his role in the Saints' Bountygate scandal. Nonetheless, it found the Saints organization as a whole guilty of conduct detrimental to the league as well due to Williams and the players' maintenance of the bounty pool, as well as Loomis and Payton's failure to act "in a responsible manner" to stop it. Goodell also implied that Payton would have faced significant punishment in any event, since his contractual obligation to supervise his assistants meant that he at least should have known about the scheme. "If the Saints tended to injure more players, then teams that played them would tend to list more injuries the following week. "They are on the field, so I don't think they are absolved from any responsibility because of that," he said. "[33], All four players appealed their suspensions. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has reduced the bounty-related suspensions of two New Orleans Saints players while upholding the punishments of two others. [9] Vikings owner Zygi Wilf even went as far as to complain to the league about what happened to Favre, though no action was taken at the time. [78], On October 27, 2012, former league commissioner Paul Tagliabue postponed the bounty appeals hearing,[79] expecting to set a new schedule on October 29, 2012. Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma is suspended for the entire 2012 season after offering $10,000 in cash to any player who knocked Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner out of the 2009 Divisional playoff . The New Orleans Saints bounty scandal, widely dubbed " Bountygate ", [1] [2] [3] [4] was an incident in which members of the New Orleans Saints franchise of the NFL were accused of paying out bonuses, or "bounties", for injuring opposing team players. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. Commissioner.com is a registered trademark of CBS Interactive Inc. site: media | arena: nfl | pageType: stories | In 2012, Paul Tagliabue, Goodell's predecessor as commissioner, was brought in to hear the appeals of four Saints players who were suspended by Goodell for their roles in the pay-for-injury . Not only is De'Aaron Fox on a ridiculous scoring stretch, his shooting percentage is beyond efficient. We have made it clear that punishment without evidence is not fair. He claimed to have several thousand pages of evidence of this, but refused to show it to anyone. JUNIOR GALETTE on Twitter: "Bold strategy by fox. According to the AP, the NFLPA has told the players involved in the case that they could face criminal charges and that the union has hired . "[91] Fox Sports' Mark Kriegel argued that the tape proved Williams was "woefully underpunished," especially since he made the speech after being alerted that the NFL had reopened its investigation. [22], After later investigations in the 2012 offseason, the NFL also found evidence that the Saints put a bounty on then-Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck during their 2011 wild-card playoffs game. He was reinstated a year later, worked for the Titans in 2013 and returned to St. Louis last season. [21] According to that memo, Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma offered $10,000 cash to any teammate who knocked Favre out of the NFC Championship Game. [77] Two days after the fifth game of the season, on October 9, 2012, the league re-issued the suspensions without any changes or reductions; the players' appeals continued. However, of all coaches to have serious scandals tarnish their . appreciated. April 15 - Payton holds his first team meeting at . 1994-96: Houston Oilers - Linebackers Coach Payments were known to double or even triple during the playoffs. "Everybody was sworn in under oath in front of a judge with the risk of perjury and jail time if we were lying, and categorically denied there was a bounty," Vilma said in a text message to ESPN's Ed Werder. 2008: Jacksonville Jaguars - Defensive Coordinator Fujita and Hargrove had left the Saints by the time the suspensions were handed down. I got the first one. These typically involve incentivizing fouling, knocking out, and injuring opposition players. The Saints appealed the suspensions of Payton, Loomis and Vitt, but the NFL upheld the suspensions. However, linebacker Eddie Robinson, who played for Williams in Houston and Tennessee as well as in Buffalo, acknowledged an incentive pool but said he never heard Williams favor deliberately injuring other players. A Warner Bros. In an interview with NFL Network's Rich Eisen, Goodell said that the threat to player safety, as well as the fact the Saints lied about it, demanded significant punishment. Hargrove actively participated in the program as a Saint and obstructed the leagues investigation by being untruthful, the statement said, while Fujita pledged a significant amount of money to the program. Of course, almost every detail of Bountygate is quickly dispensed or ignored, including the fact that it was reportedly taking place during that 2010 season. A college softball team showcased the ultimate act of sportsmanship on Saturday by helping an opponent who just hit a home run around the bases. I remember over at Excelsior Springs when Im 16 years old I had a big hit in a ballgame and all of a sudden I got a movie certificate and it wasnt because I helped the guy up, its because I knocked the guy down. On March 2, 2012, the NFL announced that it had evidence that defensive coordinator Gregg Williams had created the program soon after his arrival in 2009, and alleged that "between 22 and 27 Saints players" were involved. 2001-03:Buffalo Bills - Head Coach He also claimed that NFL Network yanked its planned replay of the 2009 NFC Championship Game due to concern that fans might look more closely for late hits that should have been called. . The players and Williams contributed their own cash to the pot, and received cash payments based on their performance in the previous week's game. An @NFL player is injured let's start off by asking Sean Payton, who quite literally had a bounty system to Injure opposing teams players #BountyGate ask me how I know this to be True " Bold strategy by fox. Lombardi claimed that as a result, Williams operated essentially as "an independent contractor." Coy Wire, a safety during Williams' tenure, said that Williams gave bonuses for hits that left opponents seriously injured, and two other players said that bonuses were also awarded for "knockouts." His status will be reevaluated by commissioner Roger Goodell following the 2012 season. [48], CBSSports.com's Pat Kirwan tweeted that within hours of the NFL releasing its report, lawyers for several players were already telling him that their clients were considering legal action against the Saints and Williams. The league also found that Vitt, whom Payton had assigned to monitor Williams (the two reportedly didn't get along very well), also knew about the broader lines of the scheme and even witnessed Williams handing out payments to players. Saints GM Mickey Loomis had been ordered by owner Tom Benson to shut down the program, but failed to do so. Please logout and login again. The NFL said payoffs went to 22 to 27 defensive players for inflicting game-ending injuries on targeted opponents, including quarterbacks Brett Favre and Kurt Warner. [59][60], The Saints were also fined $500,000the maximum fine permitted under the league constitution, and had to forfeit their second-round draft picks in 2012 and 2013 (their first-round pick in 2012 had already been traded to the New England Patriots, and therefore, could not be forfeited; after the penalty; the Saints' first pick in the 2012 NFL Draft is a third-rounder). [45], Williams, who left after the season to become defensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams, was summoned to NFL headquarters after the investigation concluded in mid-February. In the "Bountygate" scandal, the NFL suspended several Saintsincluding head coach Sean Payton and defensive captain Jonathan Vilmafor involvement in a system, allegedly run by defensive. This provision is normally used to sanction off-field conduct. This legendary status is probably why a team like the Dallas Cowboys would love to hire him sooner rather than later. The program involved as many as 27 players and at least one assistant coach, the league concluded after an investigation. In NFL, non-contract bonuses are known as "bounties.". Devin White has never been shy about . He ordered his men to try to knock out running back Kendall Hunter, even if it meant hitting him out of bounds. No player was taken out of the game and no outcomes were changed by the injury of a player. After the program was reported on, Payton and Loomis said they took full responsibility for the practice, which they said happened under our watch.. During the 2010 investigation, Payton told Williams and Vitt to "make sure our ducks are in a row" when the league interviewed them. Payton received a 1-year suspension from the NFL in 2012 for Bountygate -- when Saints players were getting cash payouts from 2009 to 2011 for targeting and injuring opponents during games. "[27] In an article written for the March 12 edition of SI, King wrote that league officials were so outraged that they were likely to hand down penalties similar to the season-long bans Paul Hornung and Alex Karras received in 1963 for gambling. He'd been at the helm for 16 years. [36], Several former Bills players subsequently told The Buffalo News of a similar system during Williams' tenure as Bills' head coach from 2001 to 2003. Former Redskins defensive coordinator Gregg Williams ran a bounty system that paid out cash bonuses for big hits during his time in Washington and most recently with the New Orleans Saints. "I. [47] The NFLPA asked the league to delay any sanctions until the union could conduct its own investigation. [55], On April 5, documentary filmmaker Sean Pamphilon released audio of a meeting Williams held with his defense before their 2012 divisional playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers. ESPN NFL analyst and former Dallas Cowboys safety Darren Woodson said that much of Williams' speech was standard pregame rhetoric. The NFL determined that Vilma and Smith helped Williams start the bounty program. [58], On March 21, 2012, the NFL issued sanctions to Saints coaches and front-office personnel for their roles in the scandal. A Colorado court ruled against Hackbart, saying violence was part of the game. However, Warner later said that the hit which knocked him out was legal, and had nothing to do with his decision to retire. [7][18][20], The NFL sent a confidential and detailed memo to all 32 teams detailing its findings. "[33], Shortly after the Saints' bounty system came to light, four former Washington Redskins players, as well as a coach, told The Washington Post that Williams operated a similar system while he was the Redskins' defensive coordinator from 2004 to 2007. [5] The union lodged a formal grievance on May 4, contending that since the suspensions were for on-field misconduct, the players' appeals should be heard by Ted Cottrell and Art Shell, whom the collective bargaining agreement designates as the hearing officers for on-field sanctions. [7] Williams and the players pooled their own money to pay out performance bonuses. [20][25] He also gave the league's clubs until March 30, 2012 to certify in writing that they do not have bounty programs. McCray hit Favre below the knees, briefly knocking Favre out of the game with an ankle injury. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. From Playmakers, a look at how close Sean Payton came to becoming the Cowboys coach in 2019 -- and how Anthony Davis (yes, Anthony Davis) kept it from happening. After seeing the NFLs decision letters, the NFLPA has still not received any detailed or specific evidence from the league of these specific players involvement in an alleged pay-to-injure program, Smith said in a statement. The plotline begins in 2012, when Payton is suspended for the season by commissioner Roger Goodell for the Saints' bounty scandal, which gives Payton the chance to re-assess his life and put it in . The numbers are striking."[94]. From Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins, the team's first-round draft pick in 2009, now comes perhaps the most remarkable. "Everybody was sworn in under oath in front of a judge with the risk of perjury and jail time if we were lying, and categorically denied there was a bounty," Vilma said in a text message to ESPN's Ed Werder. The Saints also lied to the NFL over the past two years when an investigation was being conducted, so the punishment does seem to fit the crime. Roger Goodell claimed the Saints had a system from 2009-2011 where they would pay to specifically injure other players. Linebacker Jonathan Vilma was suspended for the entire 2012 season, DL Anthony Hargrove was suspended for eight games, Will Smith for four and Scott Fujita for three. GM Mickey Loomis was suspended without pay for the first eight regular-season games of 2012. [5] However, former commissioner Paul Tagliabue overturned all sanctions against the players in December 2012 after finding that despite the players being "very much involved," the coaches and the Saints organization were primarily responsible for the scandal.[6]. It did, but monetary incentives for big hits and even injuries were and probably still is common place. Audio of Williams' meeting with Saints defense, Last edited on 15 February 2023, at 09:07, 2007 National Football League videotaping controversy, "NFL needs to start cleaning up 'BountyGate' by going after Sean Payton and Gregg Williams for role in Saints' bounty system", "Did Rex's former team put out bounties? 6-keys: media/spln/nfl/reg/free/stories, at )[86] Seau's sentiments were echoed by Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton. The whole incident only briefly tarnished the reputations of the Saints organization and Payton, who tried to appeal his suspension. When the game clock hit 00:00 last night in Broncos' victory over the Jets, head coach Vic Fangio sprinted across the field yelling at players to head "right to the f***ing locker room . New light is being brought to the career altering neck injury suffered by Hall of Fame passer Peyton Manning. In a profanity-laced speech, Williams instructed his players to deliberately try to injure several 49ers players. 1984-87: Belton High School - Head Coach, Chadiha: Players shouldn't be only fall guys, Kreidler: Explaining Roger Goodell's actions, Howard: Retired player has second thoughts, TMQ: Saints set bad example for lower levels, Hill: Misplaced outrage over NFL bounties, Jacobs: Williams must be banned for 5 years, Clayton: Saints bounties worse than Spygate. It is the obligation of everyone, including the players on the field, to ensure that rules designed to promote player safety, fair play, and the integrity of the game are adhered to and effectively and consistently enforced, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement announcing the suspensions. To test whether the Saints injured more players than a typical team, one need only compare the number of players added to injury reports after a Saints game to the league-wide average. For many players on that post-Bountygate team, that meant reminiscing about past successes (tight end David Thomas, for one . The system was in place from 2009 -- the season the Saints won the Super Bowl -- to 2011, and between 22 and 27 Saints players participated in the program. [14] Another source told CBSSports.com's Mike Freeman that Reggie Bush's agent at the time, Michael Ornstein, was closely involved in the scheme from the beginning. The NFL's retort is that with all due deference, you don't get to second guess (Goodell). [75] However, a league source told CBSSports.com's Judge that it also gives Goodell the power to rule on in-game conduct if he feels that it runs counter to the integrity of the game. Clubs will also be required to certify that no bounty systems exist as part of the yearly certifications they must make under the league's Integrity of the Game Policy.[64]. In a statement, Goodell said that the NFL would not tolerate "conduct or a culture" that put player safety at risk. Such practices are forbidden and strictly punishable. Vikings coach Brad Childress later said that there were at least 13 instances where he felt the Saints deliberately went after Favre. [44] The Steelers released a statement on their official web site mentioning that the team does not condone any sort of bounty program. Several other stars, including quarterback Kurt Warner, were on the Saints' radar during a 'Bountygate' scandal between 2009-2011. Fujita played the first four games of the season for the Browns before suffering a season-ending (and ultimately, career-ending) neck injury;[81] he would sign a ceremonial one-day contract with the Saints in the offseason and retire with the team. To shut down the program involved as many as 27 players and at least one assistant players injured in bountygate. 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