From the Associated Press, which should be more reputable than some. However, the timing of dropping this story on Super Bowl week in NOLA is about as creepy as some of the things alleged.

Mostly old news that's being rehashed to take advantage of the visibility available to maximize clicks and the related ad revenues. Note the byline on the story. It's not credited to any individual reports and simply carries a generic Associated Press byline. Not condoning anything that the Saints did or didn't do, but this is opportunistic grandstanding, pure and simple.

The AP News version of the article has the byline ... Jim Mustain and Brett Martel


https://apnews.com/article/new-orlea...4a9db1897f8171

Mustain isn't Associated Press. He is with National Catholic Reporter and has been rehashing this story since 2019.

https://www.ncronline.org/authors/jim-mustain

It appears Mustain came to Martel to get the story back out there again.

https://www.americamagazine.org/voices/brett-martel

Mostly old news that's being rehashed to take advantage of the visibility available to maximize clicks and the related ad revenues. Note the byline on the story. It's not credited to any individual reports and simply carries a generic Associated Press byline. Not condoning anything that the Saints did or didn't do, but this is opportunistic grandstanding, pure and simple.

I've been a long time fan and this is the first I've heard of it. So while it may have taken place 7+ years ago, old news to some is brand new news to others.

However dubious the timing of this rehash of history, this is horrific. To poo poo is away is nothing short of abominable.

There was a big thread on this very subject right here in the forum back in 2020. I remember it was right before the pandemic. What those individual priests did was horrendous and they all deserve to be punished.

Okay, I found the thread. This is a response from the Saints, posted in that thread, not so coincidentally a couple of weeks prior to the Super Bowl in 2020:

Statement from the New Orleans Saints

While there is current litigation relative to the New Orleans Archdiocese and clergy sex abuse, our comments are limited only to the scope of our involvement. The New Orleans Saints organization has always had a very strong relationship with the Archdiocese. The Archdiocese reached out to a number of community and civic minded leaders seeking counsel on handling the pending media attention that would come with the release of the clergy names in November of 2018. Greg Bensel, Senior Vice President of Communications for the New Orleans Saints, was contacted and offered input on how to work with the media. The advice was simple and never wavering. Be direct, open and fully transparent, while making sure that all law enforcement agencies were alerted. The New Orleans Saints, Greg Bensel and Mrs. Gayle Benson were and remain offended, disappointed and repulsed by the actions of certain past clergy. We remain steadfast in support of the victims who have suffered and pray for their continued healing.

Further, the Saints have no interest in concealing information from the press or public. At the current discovery stage in the case of Doe v. Archdiocese, the Saints, through their counsel, have merely requested the court to apply the normal rules of civil discovery to the documents that the Saints produced and delivered to Mr. Doe's counsel. Until the documents are admitted into evidence at a public trial or hearing in the context of relevant testimony by persons having knowledge of the documents and the events to which they pertain, the use of the documents should be limited to the parties to the case and their attorneys. If admitted into evidence of the case, the documents and the testimony pertaining to them will become part of the public record of the trial of the case.

Mostly old news that's being rehashed to take advantage of the visibility available to maximize clicks and the related ad revenues. Note the byline on the story. It's not credited to any individual reports and simply carries a generic Associated Press byline. Not condoning anything that the Saints did or didn't do, but this is opportunistic grandstanding, pure and simple.