RockyMountainSaint

Report: Gregg Williams rejects requests to testify in bounty appeal | ProFootballTalk

We learned last weekend, via Chris Mortensen of ESPN, that the bounty appeal hearings conducted by former Commissioner Paul Tagliabue will consume several days, making them look more like a courtroom proceeding than the cursory “you’ll get nothing and like it” protocol that the NFL had intended to employ with Commissioner Roger Goodell presiding over the case.

But the question continues to be who will — and who won’t — testify.

CBS has reported that former Saints assistant Mike Cerullo will participate. His testimony becomes critical in light of his sworn statement and his email to the league office from last November, which dusted off a cold case and set the entire bounty process in motion.

But CBS reports that, while the players involved in the bounty appeal have been told that former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams will testify, Williams has “rejected repeated overtures to do so and continues to do so.”

There’s an easy solution to the problem. The NFL needs to tell Williams that he’ll participate, or he’ll never coach or consult or have any connection of any kind to the NFL again.

Already, Williams will have a hard time ever coaching again in the NFL, given the content of a sworn statement that fairly can be characterized as tattling on one of his players, Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma. Right or wrong, plenty of NFL players will neither trust Williams nor have any respect for him.

But it’s believed that Gregg Williams will, once his suspension ends, become a consultant for the Rams, studying film and working on game plans away from the locker room and the practice field. The league, which expressly has conditioned his reinstatement on the extent to which he cooperates with future proceedings, needs to simply tell Williams that, if he doesn’t testify, he’ll never be reinstated.

And Tagliabue needs to tell the NFL that, if Williams isn’t compelled to appear, his sworn statement will be regarded as inadmissible and irrelevant.

While no proceeding of this nature entails subpoena power, the NFL has the ability to force its employees to cooperate, or risk consequences to their jobs. If the NFL chooses not to use that power over Williams, the league should be prevented from using any of the evidence he has provided.

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AlaskaSaints

LOL

I'm pulling for Williams to grow some dignity. But I'll probably be disappointed by his throw-the-Saint-under-the-bus testimony.

Alaska

saintfan

pherein

BURN !!!!!

AsylumGuido

He doesn't want to testify because his story will change under oath.

QBREES9

Yup need to grab a beer

Tobias-Reiper

Oh, no. No no no no no. Williams' statement has to be used, and has to be matched against Cerullo's.

lee909

Surely if Williams refuses to testify the NFL case completely falls apart.
The only one accusing the Saints of anything is Cerullo`s who`s statement can be easily dismissed as a pissed off former employee.
His sacking shows his character issues.

Could be some serious back pedaling from the league.
Be interesting what happens with the loss of a pick last year,loss of coaches and GM for all or parts of this year.
Return of pick in the 13 draft and additional supplement pick?

MatthewT

Maybe Gregg Williams sticks to his guns and doesn't testify, then the case should get thrown out is my best guess. If Gregg Williams has any balls, he would tell the NFL to blow off, even if it puts the kill shot on him coming back to the NFL. At least that would be the most dignified thing he can do. That at the very least should get his respect level back up, can grab a TV job or be a head coach for an SEC team in college.

lee909

I think Williams is done at the top level.
Maybe he would get a job at a desperate college but i think he would need to go to a small team as head coach to get back any respect.
Players/head offices wont trust him and i doubt many college would risk the backlash of signing him with the baggage and reputation he brings.
Should have kept his mouth shut from the start