Saints’ Payton Suspended For NFL Season, Players Could Follow
According to ESPN reports, New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton has been suspended for the entire 2012 NFL season without pay due to the bounties paid out for big hits.
Payton was set out to make $7.5 million this upcoming season. Former Saints defensive coordinator Greg Williams, who’s now with the St. Louis Rams, has been banned indefinitely.
Payton is accused of covering up a system of extra cash pay outs which NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell referred to as “particularly unusual and egregious,” and “totally unacceptable.”
The suspensions kept coming, Goodell also banned Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis for the first eight games of the season in addition to a $500,000 fine to the team and taking away a second-round pick in this and next year’s draft.
The NFL has said there were 22 to 27 players involved in the scheme that payed $1,500 for “knockouts” and $1,000 for “cart-offs.” The league reports defensive captain Johnathan Vilma offered $10,000 to any player who would knock-out then-Vikings quarterback Brett Favre out of the 2010 NFC championship game.
Punishment to any of the Saints players is still uknown as the case is still under review with the NFL Players Association.
Quarterback Drew Brees tweeted his reaction to the suspension.
“I am speechless. Sean Payton is a great man, coach, and mentor. The best there is. I need to hear an explanation for this,” Brees’ tweet read.
