Rating: (0 votes - average)

Traditionally, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton is quick to embrace a former assistant coach on the field before a game.

Names like the Bills' Doug Marrone and Raiders' Dennis Allen come to mind and there are probably a handful of others Payton has smiled and bantered with during pregame warmups. I'm sure we'll see Payton and Lions offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi hug it out at Ford Field in mid-October when Payton spots his former quarterbacks coach.

The Saints will take on the St. Louis Rams on Friday night at the Edward Jones Dome. Gregg Williams, the Saints' former defensive coordinator once praised for guiding the defense in New Orleans' Super Bowl XLIV triumph, will coach his first game as the Rams' defensive coordinator.

It's actually Williams' first game on the sideline since the Saints' 2011 NFC divisional playoff loss at San Francisco, and his first game as a defensive coordinator since being dubbed by the NFL as the ringleader of the Saints' alleged bounty program.

There will be no glad-handing between Payton and Williams. There also will be no hugs between Williams and Saints linebacker coach Joe Vitt. No jokes. Probably no eye contact, either.

Payton, who was suspended for the 2012 season in connection to the bounty scandal, said upon his reinstatement into the NFL in January 2013 he had no desire to talk with Williams. Payton, though, said a few months later he didn't regret hiring Williams, saying what the 2009 staff established couldn't be taken away from them.

No suspension, lost wages or damaged reputation can erase the Saints' Super Bowl XLIV crown.

But there's no forgiving and no forgetting in this story. Not with these guys.

The friction between the Saints and Williams began early in their working relationship. It boiled over as Williams exited the Saints en route to St. Louis after the 2011 season.

Vitt served a six-game ban in connection to the bounty scandal. He also served as the interim for Payton during the 2012 season. Vitt held nothing back in his bounty hearing testimony about Williams.

"And the first time we brought Gregg Williams, we said, 'Jesus Christ, this guy is nuts,'" Vitt said. "You know, I mean, talking about himself, talking about his accomplishments, talking about his money, talking about how he should -- you know, the guy had a pretty bad track record in being a pretty good defensive coordinator."

Vitt continued his verbal assault on Williams when questioned about his departure to St. Louis in the bounty hearings in December 2012:

"Now, I think the biggest thing that everybody gets tired of with Gregg is just day after day, week after week of the bull(expletive), the crazy stories I mean, I'm going to give you my texts. I'll show you that all the time he's got this insatiable desire to talk about himself. He's got this insatiable desire to talk about how good he is and his family is.

"And in the course of all of the bull(expletive) stories, you've got to work your way through it, you've got to -- you know, you've got to try to get the meat and the potatoes of what's true and not true. But after a while, that just gets to you. It just gets to you.

"I would say the final straw was the last two weeks of the season -- of the Detroit, San Francisco (playoff games), you know, Gregg kept coming to Sean every day and wanted his contract extension and wanted his extension done. And Sean said, well, we'll talk about it at the end of the season, well knowing what direction Sean was going in.

"And the last week of the season, it's all in the papers, you know, Gregg has gone to St. Louis, it's his best friend Jeff Fisher, you know, ba-boom, ba-boom, ba-boom, trying to squeeze Sean, trying to squeeze (GM) Mickey (Loomis) to get his contract. And the day after the playoff game that we lost against San Francisco, he went into Sean's office and says I need to know right now, I need my contract, I've got to let Jeff know what I'm doing. And Sean said, you're not going to get a contract here. I think it's best go to St. Louis with your friend Jeff. And that was it. ...

"It didn't end pretty. It didn't end nice. I'm sure that Gregg has a lot of animosity towards me now."

All of this happened before the bounty drama became public.

Williams returned to an NFL coaching staff last season, serving as a defensive consultant with Tennessee to aid longtime coaching friend Jerry Gray. Then Jeff Fisher, Williams' admitted best friend in coaching, hired the former Saints defensive coordinator after, ironically, Rob Ryan left St. Louis after the briefest of stints to head to the Saints as their defensive guru.

And now Williams makes his return mentoring a defense.

Here's the one question I can't stop from circling my brain: Why would the Saints play anyone in their projected starting offensive lineup in this preseason game?

We already know Drew Brees isn't playing with his oblique injury, despite Payton's attempts to deflect the obvious. Oh, and don't forget Brees questioned Williams' mental state right after former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue vacated the suspensions for Jonathan Vilma, Will Smith, Anthony Hargrove and Scott Fujita.

I wouldn't have cared if Brees was injured or not. My advice would have been to sit Brees no matter what.

It's not like the first unit would play more than a series or two, anyway. It's not worth the risk of playing the Saints' most valuable offensive assets.

Then, of course, there's the Saints' infamous preseason opener in the 2011 season against San Francisco and then-rookie coach Jim Harbaugh. The alleged backstory of a non-phone call between Payton and Harbaugh about how the game would be played allegedly spurred hard feelings. True, false or somewhere in the middle, something gave Williams the itch to blitz.

read more

Mr.Riaton

With all the bulls**t Williams has gone through surrounding the whole bountygate crap,he'd be stupid to even think about getting his guys to hurt any players-especially players from the team that let him walk. And you know daddy goodell will be watching...

Euphoria

Come on these are grown men. This is behind us and him. Move on get over it.

This is 2014 getting kicked off. I don't think Williams will come remotely close to have a player intentionally hurt one of our players... they supposedly learned there lesson right. That is why Williams got reinstated.

Jack Vegas

pshh......Williams got reinstated because he rolled over for Goodell and testified against the players. Keep in mind he was actually reinstated BEFORE Sean Payton was, now tell me there wasn't some shady back room deal going on there.

And normally I would say everybody deserves a second chance, but everything I have read about Williams says he is bat-**** crazy. Also, I am pretty sure he purposely sabotaged the whole team in that 2011 playoff game. That was the most f-ed-up defensive game plan I've ever seen.

The Dude

I think there is a coorilation between this idea and our injured right now

halloween 65

I take it as there will be no(gentlemans agreement) between Payton and Williams. He could blitz every play, it's up to the O to stop anything he can throw at us. Williams want hold off the dogs, he will let them hunt. This should be a good chest match, can't wait. The good news is we get to see how our #2 and #3 qb. handle it.

Seer1

Reality, or Larry Holder out of real things to write about? Hmmm?

The Dude

How do you know it's behind them? Have you talked to either of them?

dam1953

I'm starting to get the feeling that Williams isn't on Vitt's Christmas Card list.

The Dude

Williams brought the house until the last second ticked off the clock when we played SF in preseason the year we lost to them in the playoffs. It's just his MO and I expect Williams to turn up the heat even more against us.