"Who Dat" Bounty Games...

The Prowler · « **on:** March 02, 2012, 05:27:01 PM »

http://news.findlaw.com/apnews/706426b018de49e3b675dcd759f81164

Townhallsavoy · « **Reply #1 on:** March 02, 2012, 06:08:45 PM »

Fuck all y'all hataz.

And it was blatantly obvious in the NFC championship game when the defensive linemen were going after Favre's legs every play.

Kaos · « **Reply #2 on:** March 02, 2012, 06:37:10 PM »

Saints = Bama.

Further evidence.

AUJarhead · « **Reply #3 on:** March 02, 2012, 09:48:04 PM »

Does this mean Sean Payton = Reggie Dunlop

The Prowler · « **Reply #4 on:** March 02, 2012, 10:37:19 PM »

Quote from: Kaos on March 02, 2012, 06:37:10 PM

Saints = Bama.

Further evidence.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

AWK · « **Reply #5 on:** March 05, 2012, 01:29:57 PM »

Whispers about Goodell suspending Payton for several games next year... Thoughts Chad?

GH2001 · « **Reply #6 on:** March 05, 2012, 02:39:06 PM »

Quote from: Kaos on March 02, 2012, 06:37:10 PM

Saints = Bama.

Further evidence.

I'd say more

60% of Bammers = Saints
40% of Bammers = Falcons

But yeah, I agree with your premise.

AWK · « **Reply #7 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:07:21 PM »

The front page of ESPN right now has an article up about how the Saints should fire Payton and their GM because they knew about the bounties...wow.

Saniflush · « **Reply #8 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:17:52 PM »

meh. If a bounty was making a difference then they weren't doing their job to begin with. That's what their contract is. A bounty.

Townhallsavoy · « **Reply #9 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:39:10 PM »

Quote from: AWK on March 05, 2012, 03:07:21 PM

The front page of ESPN right now has an article up about how the Saints should fire Payton and their GM because they knew about the bounties...wow.

Total overreaction.

I'm not proud of the actions, but this isn't isolated to the Saints. I listened to Warren Sapp during the season talk about players getting fined for helmet to helmet hits. He said that when he played for the Bucs, no one cared about fines for late hits or helmet-to-helmet hits because the other players would just pay the fine. He even explained how it was encouraged to take out the important players on the opposition.

This morning I listened on the radio to a former NFL player say that it was well-known throughout the NFL that Buddy Ryan's defense was instructed to hurt the quarterback and skill players.

When the helmet-to-helmet hoopla hit its peak a few years ago, many talked about the Steeler's defense and how they often played as if they were intentionally trying to hurt people. See James Harrison's numerous suspensions and fines over the last four seasons.

The problem here is that a coach has been outed as calling for the bounties. I'd be curious to know how many assholes are clenched tight right now knowing that Gregg Williams, Micky Loomis, or any other coach/player could out who else has been participating in bounties.

Townhallsavoy · « **Reply #10 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:45:32 PM »

Something else that bothers me about this story -

Why now?

You can do some digging and probably find a post from me after the 2009 NFC championship game discussing the tactics the Saints used to win. It was blatantly obvious the Saints were purposefully trying to injure Brett Favre. Numerous late hits. Multiple shots to the knees. They were trying to take the guy out.

No one in the media mentioned it. It was all "Look at the Katrina redemption story!" The city of New Orleans is BACK! God is blessing those who have been oppressed!

If anyone was seriously paying attention to the safety of the players on the field, they would have been blowing a gasket then.

Does a coach offerring money for the hits make it ten times worse? Sure. But don't miss what the media and NFL is attacking. They're attacking the exposure of the coach offerring money and not the actual intention to injure the players. To reiterate - if they were actually upset and worried about the players, they would have been calling for answers three years ago.

Townhallsavoy · « **Reply #11 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:49:08 PM »

Quote

The New Orleans Saints find themselves involved in a major scandal after the NFL uncovered a bounty pool of up to $50,000 the last three seasons to reward game-ending injuries inflicted on opposing players.

Bounty Scandal
How big of a problem are bounties around the league? Vote in our polls here.

But this isn't the first time that the league has investigated a team for targeting opposing players for profit. In October 2008, linebacker Terrell Suggs told an Atlanta radio station that the Ravens had "a bounty" -- yes, he used that word -- on wide receiver Hines Ward and running back Rashard Mendenhall.

His comments about a bounty seemed valid because it came after Mendenhall sustained a season-ending shoulder injury on a hit by Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis. Suggs later clarified his remarks, explaining the Ravens were merely planning to keep a close eye on certain players.

"There wasn't any bounty," Suggs said in 2008. "He [the talk show host] asked me if there was a bounty and I just said I'm going to keep a watch on the guy. He [Ward] broke some guy's jaw last week, and he tried to cheap-shot JJ [Jarret Johnson]. He has also cheap-shotted Ed Reed. We're just going to be on alert the next time we play him."

All the NFL did was send Suggs a letter informing him that any further comments or on-field activity indicating his participation in bounty activity could result in "significant disciplinary action."

So, did the Ravens have bounties out on the Steelers? No one can say for sure without any proof. But Suggs knows the definition of "bounty." For him to use that word, it makes this a legitimate question.

Ward first heard of the Ravens having a bounty on him back in January 2002. According to Ward that year, a Ravens player would be rewarded if he could knock out either one on a crossing route. And, if the Ravens were going to put a bounty on someone, you know they would place Ward at the top of that list.

Outside linebacker Jarret Johnson, who is scheduled to be a free agent after playing for the Ravens from 2003 to 2011, told a Baltimore radio station on Saturday that he was unaware of the Ravens ever using a bounty system during his time in the organization.

“I don’t know exactly what [the Saints] were doing,” Johnson said. “In my opinion, in my experience in the NFL, the things you hear about bounties get blown out of proportion."

Johnson was asked if he got extra money for the hard hit he laid on Ward this past season. “I’m sure there were a lot of people that wanted to pay me for it," Johnson said. "But no, I didn’t get paid."

http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/43507/did-ravens-put-bounties-out-on-steelers

Townhallsavoy · « **Reply #12 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:56:36 PM »

Quote

The NFL again has assumed its perpetually awkward position on a high horse, this time by exposing the New Orleans Saints for a bounty program that compromised "the integrity of our game."

That was Roger Goodell's characterization in the league's announcement Friday. He cited the single most important aspect of competition any commissioner is entrusted to protect.

For real.

In related news, Goodell was informed that interior linemen sometimes will say really mean things about each other's moms before a snap.

This crisis — and it's reaching that level, judging by the hyperbolic coast-to-coast coverage over the weekend — was so stunning, so jarring, that its unique impact could be felt ... for nearly an hour.

By late Friday afternoon, Tony Dungy told Pro Football Talk that the Tennessee Titans used to put up bounties on Peyton Manning.

Before dinner, the Washington Post broke that the 2004-07 Redskins — playing for the same defensive coordinator, Gregg Williams, being implicated in the New Orleans case — did exactly the same thing.

And by nightfall, current and former NFL players everywhere were nearly unified in their abject ambivalence to this qualifying as news. As Matt Bowen, a safety for those Washington teams, penned for a piece in the Chicago Tribune, "Bounties, cheap shots, whatever you want to call them, they're part of this game."

So, who in Goodell's NFL Security force got the Sherlock Award for this coup?

Was Seal Team 6 summoned?

Understand, please: I'm not making light of athletes putting bounties on competitors. Some of the cases described involving these Saints and Redskins can turn a stomach, not least of which was New Orleans specifically targeting Kurt Warner and Brett Favre for injury. It's an abhorrent practice, and the league is absolutely right to put an immediate and harsh stop to it.

But that shouldn't stop anyone from asking why exactly the NFL waited so long.

Or to question whether the league is serious this time.

You probably remember the league's best chance in recent years to address this, publicly and firmly, even if the league won't appreciate the reminder. Happened in October 2008, soon after a game between the Steelers and Ravens — naturally — when Baltimore loudmouth linebacker Terrell Suggs was part of this exchange on a radio show:

Host: "Did y'all put a bounty out on that young man?"

The reference was to the Steelers' Rashard Mendenhall.

Suggs: "Definitely. The bounty was out on him, and the bounty was out on Hines Ward. We just didn't get him between the whistles."

No, but the Ravens got to Mendenhall. Motivated by money or not, Ray Lewis hit Mendenhall hard enough to end his season with a shoulder injury.

This was NFL executive vice president Ray Anderson's response to Suggs' confession at the time: "That 'bounty' notion is completely against the rules. To the extent that someone is engaged in that activity, we will look into it and address it."

Right. There was no suspension, no fine, not even a finger-wag.

The Ravens' PR staff crafted a statement from Suggs denouncing bounties and — this is a beauty — former coach Brian Billick wrote the following on his blog: "This is standard operating procedure in virtually every locker room in the NFL. ... What is worth commenting on is how stupid it is to talk about it afterward. Locker room talk should be just that."

The NFL, in apparent harmony with Billick's thinking, never spoke of it again.

And now, with the issuing of a single press release, we're supposed to accept that the league — same people, with Goodell and Anderson still in place — suddenly are mortified by this and will come down hard on New Orleans. Multiple draft picks could be docked. The team, as well as individuals, could face huge fines and suspensions. Washington will be next.

Monday, the NFL takes its next step toward washing hands. The league Sunday night leaked word to ESPN that Williams will be summoned to New York on Monday to further discuss the case, even though it's essentially open and shut. The real reason is Williams will draw media attention akin to a perp walk, and we'll all get to put a face to the shame. One that isn't Goodell's.

Changing the culture will take a lot more than this.

The Steelers' Ryan Clark, a member of the Redskins for Williams' first two seasons there, tweeted this Friday: "Whoever is snitching on the Saints D should be ashamed of themselves. No one was talking about the 'bounty' when they got paid. ... I'm not saying 'bounties' are ethical or right but I am saying if you participate don't go back & tell on the people u did it with!"

Say what you will about Clark — who then expected to be taken seriously when claiming Sunday, "I've never been offered $ to put a player out of a game" — but be sure his mindset is richly representative.

What the league needs now is more players standing up to this practice, speaking out as boldly as Arizona's Jay Feely did, also on Twitter: "No place in NFL for bounties. Physical play is an attribute, but malicious intent should be removed."

He's the Cardinals' kicker.

Read more: Kovacevic: NFL ultimate enabler on bounties - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/steelers/s_784905.html#ixzz1oHI3USnv

I'm not arguing that the Saints (or anyone else) are clean in this mess. What I'm saying is that this witch hunt directed toward the Saints is ridiculous. Gregg Williams should be fined or fired. Either would be fine with me.

But to turn this into a "college football recruiting scandal" and say that the entire Saints coaching staff, front office, players, and fans were aware even though there's no evidence is just another ploy by the media to get a bunch of women gossiping at the beauty parlor.

GH2001 · « **Reply #13 on:** March 05, 2012, 03:59:05 PM »

THS just posted 4 unanswered replies.

Snaggletiger · « **Reply #14 on:** March 05, 2012, 04:02:08 PM »

I have no problem with a bounty if it strictly involves a bell ringing hit that knocks someone out of the game. Hey, if the receiver wants to come across the and someone can take him out with a legal hit, been part of foosballz forever. Now going for the knees to injure someone crosses way over the line IMO. I can live with helmet to helmet and any bone crushing hit. But knees...

Snaggletiger · « **Reply #15 on:** March 05, 2012, 04:09:52 PM »

"The Steelers' Ryan Clark, a member of the Redskins for Williams' first two seasons there, tweeted this Friday: "Whoever is snitching on the Saints D should be ashamed of themselves. No one was talking about the 'bounty' when they got paid. ... I'm not saying 'bounties' are ethical or right but I am saying if you participate don't go back & tell on the people u did it with!"

This X1000. Do all the Eric Ramsey's of the world hear that? Don't take the money...don't enjoy the benefits while you're accepting something you know is against the rules...and then turn around and bite the hand that fed you. Unless you're a former Bama player.....then it's okay to sing....loudly....go ahead.

JR4AU · « **Reply #16 on:** March 05, 2012, 04:17:36 PM »

I'll bet some form of this goes on in every NFL locker room.

AU_Tiger_2000 · « **Reply #17 on:** March 05, 2012, 04:24:25 PM »

Quote from: JR4AU on March 05, 2012, 04:17:36 PM

I'll bet some form of this goes on in every NFL locker room.

What I've been hearing is that it does happen in every locker room, but it usually run by the players. They come up with the money from a pool and they have a kangaroo court that decides who gets the money. The difference was this was coming from a coach. That might be common also, but it seems not as much.

Townhallsavoy · « **Reply #18 on:** March 05, 2012, 05:16:53 PM »

Quote from: GH2001 on March 05, 2012, 03:59:05 PM

THS just posted 4 unanswered replies.

I had to get it all out. It wasn't even directed at anyone here. It was for the ESPN.com's, the radio stations, and the other yahoos out there trying to turn this into a "Fire Sean Payton and take away their Super Bowl" scandal.

AUChizad · « **Reply #19 on:** March 05, 2012, 05:44:29 PM »

My thoughts have pretty much been covered.

It's being overblown for a time in sports when there's not a lot going on to talk about.

"Some form of this goes on in every NFL locker room."

Also, Gregg Williams is the coach involved, and he's gone. Fuck him.

I don't believe Payton had shit to do with it.