Maine news, sports, weather | Kennebec Journal, Augusta, Maine

March 22, 2012

NFL: League suspends Payton for season

BY HOWARD FENDRICH AP Sports Writer

Sending a message by taking a harsh stand, Goodell also banned Saints general manager Mickey Loomis for the first eight regular-season games next season -- believed to be the first time a GM was suspended by the NFL -- and assistant coach Joe Vitt for the first six games.

In addition, Goodell fined the Saints $500,000 and took away their second-round draft picks this year and next.

"We are all accountable and responsible for player health and safety and the integrity of the game. We will not tolerate conduct or a culture that undermines those priorities," said Goodell, whose league faces more than 20 concussion-related lawsuits brought by hundreds of former players. "No one is above the game or the rules that govern it."

Payton, whose salary this season was to be at least $6 million, ignored instructions from the NFL and Saints ownership to make sure bounties weren't being paid. The league also chastised him for choosing to "falsely deny that the program existed," and for trying to "encourage the false denials by instructing assistants to 'make sure our ducks are in a row."'

All in all, Goodell's ruling is a real blow to the Saints, a franchise that Payton and quarterback Drew Brees revived and led to the 2010 Super Bowl title after decades of such futility that fans wore paper bags over their heads at home games.

Brees reacted quickly to the news on Twitter, writing: "I am speechless. Sean Payton is a great man, coach, and mentor. ... I need to hear an explanation for this punishment."

The Saints now must decide who will coach the team in Payton's place -- his suspension takes effect April 1 -- and who will make roster moves while Loomis is out. There was no immediate word from the Saints, but two candidates to take over coaching duties are defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. Spagnuolo has NFL head coaching experience; Carmichael does not, but has been with the club since 2006.

When the NFL first made its investigation public on March 2, Williams admitted to -- and apologized for -- running the program while in charge of the Saints' defense. He was hired in January by the St. Louis Rams; head coach Jeff Fisher said Wednesday he'll probably use a committee of coaches to replace Williams in 2012.

Goodell will review Williams' status after the upcoming season and decide whether he can return.

"I accept full responsibility for my actions," Williams said in a statement issued by the Rams. "I will continue to cooperate fully with the league and its investigation and ... I will do everything possible to re-earn the respect of my colleagues, the NFL and its players in hopes of returning to coaching in the future."

While some players who played for Williams elsewhere said he oversaw bounty systems there, too, the league said its interviews didn't find evidence that "programs at other clubs involved targeting opposing players or rewarding players for injuring an opponent." But Goodell could re-open the case if new information emerges.

After the NFL made clear that punishments for the Saints were looming, Payton and Loomis took the blame for violations that they acknowledged "happened under our watch" and said club owner Tom Benson "had nothing to do" with the bounty pool, which reached as much as $50,000 during the season New Orleans won its championship.

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