Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Free Sean Payton.

Or at least be real about why he’s really being punished.

The New Orleans Saints coach was suspended for all of this season because, we were told, he failed to stop a “bounty program,” a program that allegedly paid players for injuring opponents, a program that tore at the basic contract of the game.

All of this had been swallowed as gospel until an independent arbitration panel on Friday determined that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had overstepped his bounds in his sweeping punishment of players allegedly involved in this nefariousness.

What the panel told Goodell was:

• Your dictatorship authority with sweeping punitive power only applies if this is a conduct detrimental issue, not a salary-cap issue.

• Feel free to discipline them on conduct detrimental, just know you have to have evidence of intent to injure beyond dollars on a board.

• Get back to us, if you have all of this. And proof.

With bountygate players' suspensions lifted, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton's punishment should be, too - NFL News | FOX Sports on MSN

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

The tide is turning! The winds have shifted! Pick whichever metaphor you like but this article is awesome!

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Different situation...

The suspensions are going to happen just not this week. Once Commish decides which umbrella the 'crimes' committed then it will move forward. I suspect he is going to claim detriment to the game so that his penalties stick.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Love this:

"The problem was, the facts were always fuzzy, the evidence never fully revealed. And it all felt a little too convenient. In an offseason where all anybody seemed to be talking about was player health and brain injuries, Bountygate gave Goodell a bully pulpit from which to preach the gospel of personal responsibility."

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

More like a pulpit to preach the gospel of "Please don't sue us! Oh please, oh please, oh please......"

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

He needs to play it safe from this point out. If he's got evidence that he hasn't revealed, he needs to make it public, and bring down the ginger hammer again, if not, he needs to walk away from this now.

If he faces another defeat in court or in an internal appeals hearing, this whole bountygate scandal could serve as further evidence that the league does NOT, in fact, know how to police itself when it comes to matters of player safety.

That won't look good in the former player's concussions suit against the NFL.

Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Or at least be real about why he’s really being punished.

The New Orleans Saints coach was suspended for all of this season because, we were told, he failed to stop a “bounty program,” a program that allegedly paid players for injuring opponents, a program that tore at the basic contract of the game.

All of this had been swallowed as gospel until an independent arbitration panel on Friday determined that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had overstepped his bounds in his sweeping punishment of players allegedly involved in this nefariousness.

With bountygate players' suspensions lifted, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton's punishment should be, too - NFL News | FOX Sports on MSN

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

I would almost prefer for them to go ahead and get their suspensions over with now rather than later in the season when we are on a role. It could really mess with momentum if we have to pull them out mid season.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

This whole fiasco has already bit Roger in the ass. I believe his biggest miscalculation was Vilma. He's been getting away with being heavy-handed for so long. He never planned for the possibility that Jon would take his red ass to court.

Now the whole thing has come unraveled on Roger. His end game was to show the world how the NFL cares. All he has ultimately managed to do is to show the world how the NFL power structure is tilted so heavily (and unfairly) against the people who make the game what it is - and that's the players.

Roger's agenda is over. Anything he tries to do from here on out is purely an effort to save face. He can no longer accomplish the guise on the Fans and on America he was so interested in.

You're done Roger. No matter where it goes from here. Do the right thing for the players, for the league, and for that matter for you. Just drop it. Recognize you're power has been effectively limited. Deal with that and move on.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

I think by having the replacement officials has already proven they are not too much for safety.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

The suspensions were lifted not on evidence but just to clarify under what rules the players broke.

Once its ruled by Roger then the suspensions will be in plane again.

I don't know why everyone is so over joyed by this... just prolonging the suspensions is all this is doing.

So, if there was really no evidence, who the f*** is Goodell to suspend people just for the heck of it! At every court a suspenct is not guilty as long as the oposite is not proved. Let Sean coma back to the sideline, goddammit!!!


Somewhere over the rainbow!

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Euphoria,

The judges made it pretty clear that they don't think Roger presented evidence for pay to injure by telling him he could not suspend the players without evidence for pay to injure... Make sense?

Officially, this goes down as just a clarification of terms of suspension, and Goodell could decide to issue the same penalties, which I think he will, just as you do. But with the understanding that Roger had in fact accused and suspended these players on the basis of a pay to injure system, the panel overturned his rulings. If they had agreed with Goodell and felt there was sufficient proof, needless to say, they would not have done this.

As I said, I do suspect that Roger will suspend them again, but if he does so with the same lack of evidence, it won't hold up long, and it will come back to haunt him in the long run. The seeds of doubt are now planted in the minds of his supporters. Every time he loses a battle, the more that doubt will grow.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

At the least this brings to light Rogers inability to effectively and acurately perform his duties as commissioner of the NFL. The situation with the Ref's is going to push this over the top. NFL owners are not going to act now to save face and controversy but I believe next year we will see a new commissioner. If he had been fair in the first place and handed down a few minor suspensions/fines to give notice to stop the pay for performance system and also investigated others teams we know also had some system but maybe not as rampant as G williams system then all would have been well. He has dug his own grave.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

On ESPN this morning Ditka has said the coaches should also be reinstated. We know that all along these violations were not the reason for the coaches suspensions. I think there was a financial reason on top of Rogers perception that the Saints organization were not respecting and in someway undermining his supreme authority. Maybe in 5 years or so the truth will come out.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Negative.

That isn't what the panel said at all about evidence. What it is is that Goodell has no authority to impose suspensions on "pay to injury" that falls on someone else. So the suspensions have to be lifted.

However, changing the wording to the suspensions to 'Detriment to the game of Football'... then he does have the authority.

Now he may be ticked off enough to keep the same amount of suspensions based on that but luckily there isn't much proof that the players purposely injured anyone except for Harper. So we have that in our favor but we are still looking at suspensions just based on the wording of the reason for the suspensions.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Always so mean Euphoria, so mean.

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

This mess is not close to being over, Goodhell will suspend these players for a different reason than what was originally given. Then he'll have to prove to a court that he has the evidence to support his decisions. What a mess, between the so called bounty gate and replacement officials Goodhelll has created holy hell for fans. The only group that can stop him would be the owners, why hasn't Benson stepped up and publicly supported his coaches and players, can anyone answer this for me?

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

Goodell has handled this whole bountygate scandal as if he's an all powerful king. Players suspended, coaches banished teams season put in jepardy all because he says so. No proof, no accountability, just his decision.

Everyone here is happy because it's a kick in the crotch to Goodell. It's great to see somebody finally tell Goodell "No, you can't do that just because you say so. Now, if you wanna do this, you're gonna have to go back and get your $#%* together and try again."

Re: Saints coach should be freed, too
 

I read a quote where they clearly said Roger cannot suspend players unless he has "proof" of conduct detrimental. The Judges, as of yet, have not seen any such proof. The only thing the league has brought up are things pertaining to pay for performance. And even that, as we know, seems to be more hearsay than anything else. So unless Roger has something definitive, he's not going to be able to hold up his case, IMO.