Saints coaches admitted guilt under oath

[oldunclemark]

they all did it...they all lied...

Bounty transcripts: Gregg Williams says Joe Vitt kept program going

The Associated PressShare

4 Comment

(Photo: Jonathan Bachman, AP)

Story Highlights

• Then-assistant vowed not to stop a system that helped team win Super Bowl
  

7:03PM EST December 12. 2012 - Former New Orleans defensive coordinator Gregg Williams testified that he tried to shut down the team's bounty system when the NFL began investigating but was overruled by interim Saints head coach Joe Vitt, according to transcripts from appeals hearings obtained by The Associated Press.

According to the transcripts, Williams said that then-assistant Vitt responded to a suggestion that the pay-for-pain setup be abandoned with an obscenity-filled speech about how NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell "wasn't going to ... tell us to ... stop doing what won us the Super Bowl. This has been going on in the ... National Football League forever, and it will go on here forever, when they run (me) out of there, it will still go on."

Williams and Vitt were among a number of witnesses whose testimony was heard by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, who on Tuesday overturned four player suspensions in the case. Tagliabue was appointed by Goodell to handle the final round of appeals. The AP obtained transcripts of Tagliabue's closed-door hearings through a person with a role in the case.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/saints/2012/12/12/bounty-hearing-transcripts-gregg-williams-joe-vitt/1765241/

Edited December 13, 2012 by 21isSuperman

[oldunclemark]

I guess Roger Godell made this up....

"Williams stood by his earlier SWORN statement that Vilma pledged a $10,000 bounty on quarterback Brett Favre in the Saints' game against the Minnesota Vikings for the NFC championship."

[Balzer40]

Drew Bree's said via his twitter account, that Saints officials were coerced under penelty of death, to admit under oath that they were guilty of the bounties. Each Saint coach and players accused were scared that Roger Goodell and his henchmen would make them swim with the fishes if they didn't cooperate. However, Bree's still swears that each and every Saint is truly just that....a Saint. Each and every one of them are the living embodiment of true hero's and the closest thing to Godlyness that human being's can be. Bree's says, that Saints players and coaches could never do anything violent at all and never have, that each of them are God's gift not only to New Orleans, but in fact, to the entire nation as well.

(For those who get lost easily in sarcasm, this isn't really anything that Bree's actually said). Although, it does sound similarly as stupid as stuff he has said.

[shakedownstreet]

Drew Bree's said via his twitter account, that Saints officials were coerced under penelty of death, to admit under oath that they were guilty of the bounties. Each Saint coach and players accused were scared that Roger Goodell and his henchmen would make them swim with the fishes if they didn't cooperate. However, Bree's still swears that each and every Saint is truly just that....a Saint. Each and every one of them are the living embodiment of true hero's and the closest thing to Godlyness that human being's can be. Bree's says, that Saints players and coaches could never do anything violent at all and never have, that each of them are God's gift not only to New Orleans, but in fact, to the entire nation as well.

(For those who get lost easily in sarcasm, this isn't really anything that Bree's actually said). Although, it does sound similarly as stupid as stuff he has said.

sounds a lot like him. he'd do himself a major service by keeping his trap shut. i halfway liked the guy until this mess. boy was i wrong

[BOTT]

defenses try to injure the quarterback...always have...not that they will ever admit it.

[jvan1973]

I guess Roger Godell made this up....

"Williams stood by his earlier SWORN statement that Vilma pledged a $10,000 bounty on quarterback Brett Favre in the Saints' game against the Minnesota Vikings for the NFC championship."

Oh Williams said it... It must be true then..

[Synthetic]

I don't care, everytime the QB drops back to pass, someone is trying to hurt somebody. Bounties have went on since the beginning of football time. I find it amazing that the Saints beat all these Super Bowl QB's in 2009, and all I ever hear about is "but but but they had a bounty on this one and that one" who cares. Favre had his chance to beat us. I am not going to lie, the Vikings totally shredded our defense to bits in that game, but the turnovers won it. The Saints forced 5 turnovers over Minnesota, they need to get over the bounty crap.Most people don't even want to admit it, but statistically, Minnesota would have won without all those turnovers that the Saints forced.

Manning had his chance to beat us, and he threw a pick, and people want to blame that on a bounty now. Don't even get me started on Kurt Warner, the Cards never had a chance in that game, and did he complain about how he got roughed up? We also beat Eli Manning and Tom Brady that year, 2 more Super Bowl QB's, I guess we had a bounty on them too I guess.

I'm so sick of this crap. I hear it every other day. Before this, you had to be reminded of Hurricane Katrina every game "Gee the Saints are so good since Katrina" (yeah thanks nice commentators for reminding me of losing my house, that's just one of the best memories ever) now they can't go a game without saying "bounties! The saints are so bad!".

Roger Goodell is a joke, and should be removed as commissioner for the mess he's created with this. If you're gonna go after one team over this, you might as well go on a league wide witch hunt, which he is not doing. The Jets are doing bounties, and they turn the other cheek. Houston has already had a player tell media they have a bounty pool, nothing wrong with that I guess.

Bounty or not, you cannot deny that the Saints gave Brett Favre the beating of his career. Why wasn't his O-line protecting him? More than half of those hits we gave him, were not illegal either. He was rushed, blitzed and beat down in that game. I don't care how you look at it, but his offensive line should have been held responsible for that. People need to get over this and stop whining about bounties. We barely even touched Peyton Manning in the Super Bowl, and next I have to hear we had a bounty on him. The Vikings O-line ALLOWED their QB to get beat up like that, just like the Niners O-line allowed Joe Cool to take the beating of his life in the 1990 NFC Championship that no one is accusing the Giants of having a bounty on him from.

[ColtsBlueFL]

You know, there are some bounties I'm good with. Interceptions, forced fumbles, sack... stuff college players get stickers on their helmets for? Absolutely!! pool away!! for injuries and cart offs? you've got to be kidding, right? This is the type behavior that pits player vs. player beyond the rules of the game. Grudges are held and paybacks remembered and delivered. An escalating circle of paybacks, and increase of career ending conditions involving the illicit activity.

Players injured in the course of typical (even legal hard nosed play) is part of the game. taking illegal 'remember me' shots or after the whistle or cart off potential (jack you up) collisions and to the head and neck of defenseless players won't be tolerated as much anymore. Play hard, play clean.

[Emma]

I am a Saints fan. I don't know what to think about all this.

[The Peytonator]

So......

Under oath these guys admitted to the bounty, Jonathon Vilma has been cleared to play, and he's still butthurt about it? The guy got off for something he took part in...how does he think he's been wronged?

[Coltsince4]

sounds a lot like him. he'd do himself a major service by keeping his trap shut. i halfway liked the guy until this mess. boy was i wrong

I wasn't.

[oldunclemark]

Oh Williams said it... It must be true then..

the key phrase here is 'sworn statement'

[oldunclemark]

So......

Under oath these guys admitted to the bounty, Jonathon Vilma has been cleared to play, and he's still butthurt about it? The guy got off for something he took part in...how does he think he's been wronged?

Vilma's like 1,000 guys in the state pen...They think volume and intensity in denials transmits truth..

[jvan1973]

Sworn statement to tags.. It wasn't in court. Williams will say anything the NFL wants him to, otherwise he will never coach again