And I guess both Kurt Warner and Brett Favre getting all but murdered in the 2009 playoffs means nothing?
Warner only received one big hit and it was completely legal. And the one series he was out because of the hit (he returned after half time), Matt Leinart drove down the field and scored on us, lol. Moreover, people forget that the SAME game Warner got hit, there was a play after the big hit where there were a few Saints that could have straight up killed Warner. What did they do? They actually held Warner up to keep him from falling on the turf. ESPN doesn't show that though, do they?
And the shady hit on Favre (there was another illegal hit called for him, but it really wasn't illegal and even Troy Aikman argued the Saints case IIRC), which I actually said at the time was a piece of shit move, got rightfully called. All the other hits were legal. Also, people forget that Favre bruised up his leg the week before in the blowout against Dallas, so it's exaggerated the damage the Saints did to him.
Also, both Warner and Favre have come out defending the Saints on this matter.
Except we know that it did. The Saints were given a warning by the NFL to stop the program. That warning did not become public until this year, but at the time, it was a quiet, internal disciplinary matter. Had the Saints ended the bounty program at that time, we as fans would never have learned about it. The only reason this became public is because the Saints did NOT terminate the bounty program, despite having already been warned by the NFL to do so.
That's my problem, man. If the bounty continued, then why aren't players from the Saints 2010 and 2011 teams suspended? Roman Harper is by far our dirtiest player, and he's become a main focal point the last two years... obviously if there was a bounty program, he'd be receiving the checks. Malcolm Jenkins, too.
However, only guys from the 2009 squad got punished. Why is that? Because the NFL has ZERO evidence that this continued after the 2009 season outside of one disgruntled ex-employee's word.
But, if there was no evidence, why did Anthony Hargrove do a complete 180 from his initial denial to signing a document not only acknowledging the bounty program existed, but that he was a willing participant in it? Hargrove signs with the team the same year you claim
Because he's not apart of the Saints anymore and doesn't care what happens to them? Ever think of that? It's very much in the realm of possibility that he was saving his own ass after being threatened with Vilma's punishment. Someone of Hargrove's statue cannot afford a full year suspension.
Moreover, Hargrove admitted to a "bounty" system. That is too ambiguous. There is a pay to perform system (which is what I believe he admitted to participating in) in which players pool their money and dole out rewards for things such as interceptions, forced fumbles, sacks, big hits, etc. While this system is illegal, it is still not anywhere near the severity of a pay to injure program, which everyone in our organization has fervently denied.
Why did Sean Payton acknowledge to the existence of an email from 2011 that talked about placing a $5,000 bounty on Aaron Rodgers, when such a bounty program didn't exist anymore?
This is what I'm talking about... it's RUMORED that this is in the evidence, but Sean Payton denies it.
Also, the ONLY reason Sean isn't being outspoken like Vilma is, is because his suspension can continue past the 2012 season if Goodell doesn't like Payton's actions during his suspension. That was clearly stated when Payton became suspended.
So, Goodell only suspends Suh for 2 games despite obvious video evidence (notice I am not denying that Suh deserved the suspension?) But he issues out 61 games worth of suspensions to the Saints involved without any evidence? I am not even counting Gregg Williams indefinite suspension, which would obviously make that total much higher.
You know how many personal fouls have been called against Vilma in the last 3 years? 2 (one roughing the passer and one personal foul), and I remember that roughing the passer call against Eli and it wasn't a bad hit at all, just one of those grazing the head type of blows. Fujita? Zero. Hargrove? 2. Will Smith? 1, and it was complete BS (the hand barely touching the helmet type of thing).
Where is the proof these guys went out there to injure someone? Hargrove has the one hit on Favre after he handed the ball off, but that's it. Don't you think if these guys truly had the intent to go out there and hurt people that they would have done it? They're professional football players. However, no big name got severely injured against the Saints in the last 3 years, and the 'little' names that did were all regular football injuries.
C'mon jmt. What's the motivation for Goodell to be anti-Saints suddenly? What caused him to go from practically giving the entire team blowjobs for winning the Super Bowl so he could constantly mention the feel-goodness about the Saints bringing back New Orleans after Katrina to suddenly being out to get them, if there is nothing to this? Roger Goodell did his best to make the Saints into national heroes after they won the Super Bowl, so if there was no bounty program after 2009, as you claim, what could have led to the sudden reversal? Why is he going after the Saints with a fury if there is nothing to back it up? Why would they enlist an independent former US Attorney Mary Jo White to have the evidence against the Saints vetted before they took any disciplinary action? Is she part of the conspiracy against the Saints too?
I already explained it... lawsuits and an 18 game season. The NFL is protecting their ass, and they want an 18 game season. Some disgruntled ex-employee comes and says a bounty has been taking place in the NO the past three years, and Goodell saw the perfect opportunity to show people how serious he is about 'player safety' so he went overboard with everything and gave out the harshest punishments in the history of the sport, despite having ZERO evidence that the bounties really did continue after the NFL told them to stop after 2009 (otherwise, like I said, players from the 2010 and 2011 teams would have been suspended).
I'm not some conspiracy nut always looking to blame the system. If the Saints did have bounties on certain guys heads, then okay... they deserve to be punished, but show the proof before you hand out these punishments. It's only right. And if they have no proof that this didn't last past 2009 like I'm saying it didn't, then Sean Payton's suspension should surely be reduced.
Please, if Goodell was going to come up with some massive bounty gate conspiracy to bring a team down then he wouldn't have went after a team as loved as the Saints, he would have more than likely gone after a team that is known for illegal hits, a team that he hands fines and suspensions to on a seemingly regular basis, like oh IDK say Pittsburgh. He wouldn't go after a team that is in a major way responsible for giving hope to a market hit by disaster. That would just be stupid.
People patronize the Saints organization... they never "loved" us. I've heard nothing but horror stories from Saints fans going to away games, constantly being jeered about Katrina and what not.
Fans only love their team. You can end up admiring another player (like I do Tim Tebow, for example), but I could never love the Broncos near the same level as I do "my team." And all NFL fans are the same way.
Goodell needed a way to show just how serious he takes "player safety," and this was simply his perfect opportunity to do so. I just pray to God it somehow comes back and bites him in the ass.
