The punishments from the NFL to the Saints for running a bounty program were much harsher than anyone expected. Head coach Sean Payton was suspended a year, assistant coach Joe Vitt was suspended six games and fined $100,000, GM Mickey Loomis was fined $500,000 and suspended six games, and former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was suspended from the NFL indefinitely. The Saints were fined $500,000 and lost two second-round draft picks.
Quarterback Drew Brees, whose was questioned by Kyle Turley about his role in the program, was stunned by the punishment.
“I am speechless,” he tweeted Wednesday. “Sean Payton is a great man, coach, and mentor. The best there is. I need to hear an explanation for this punishment.”
Additionally, according to Pro Football Talk, Jay Glazer reported on NFL Network that Sean Payton was “stunned.” Glazer says Payton was expecting maybe a four-game suspension, and now he’ll be losing several million dollars after being suspended for the year.
To answer Brees’ question about an explanation, it sounds like the league was upset that the program went on for three years and that the team lied during the investigation. For being such “a great man,” Payton lied to the NFL to cover things up, and that is just one example of what he did wrong.
