HalftimeAdjustment

Jasper finally got on the field.

Unless you count the one who was picked at #4, that is. But he wasn't available to the Bills.

I am glad Bell did not return to Buffalo because I hate the new spelling of his name.

They have proven he was complicit, since there was an email notifying him about the bounties years after the NFL first asked the team to investigate and stop such a system. Payton's suspension is as much about these two things as anything else: - When asked about the system, he lied to the NFL about it. - When notified that the NFL would be investigating, he instructed his assistance to "get their ducks in a row"... interpreted as instructing them to hide it. As such, the NFL deemed Payton to be the most responsible party other than Williams, and as head coach responsible for cooperating with the NFL commissioner's office. Had this been just a bounty system with no complications, or had it gone on for 3 years THEN been discovered, penalties would be MUCH less severe. The fact that the team was investigated, successfully concealed the rule violations, then continued them for 2 more years, causes a great magnification of the penalty. At any corporation, this kind of behavior (failing to cooperate with a security investigation) would result in immediate termination of anyone in the organization who conducted themselves in this manner. The magnitude of the original offense (the bounties) is not what determined this penalty.

Good choice of punishments. Waiting to see what's done to players (probably not that much, except for Vilma). As for people asking why Belichek was not suspended - the question is, did he lie about it to the league? I think Payton got suspended big time not just because of the injuries, but because he lied to the league, and because he associated with a known felon who paid into the bounties.

I'm sure Brady did, so Anderson made sure to sign with Buffalo. If he buys or rents a home, he will never have to stay in the hotels!

Actually, PFT is reporting that he left Buffalo to fly to Nevada, where he will visit with ex-Bill Hall of Famer O.J. Simpson.

Any chance that the Calvin Johnson deal threw a wrench into negotiations, causing the delay?

My interpretation is that Nix etc, with the aid of the upcoming CBA provisions that mandate teams spend near the cap, have convinced Littman (and therefore Ralph) that they should be allowed to spend up to the cap, and that they should be allowed to pick the players that will make up that spend. And, because they cheaped out for the last couple of years... they have the money... even under cash to cap. The fact that the cap stayed basically the same from last year could only have helped their case.

The question of relative penalties for the Saints vs. other organizations has come up in this thread, as well as "statute of limitations". A couple of points: - If the NFL has previously considered a 'statute of limitations' for penalties then it should apply here. One would think that going after any teams beyond 10 years is out of the question. 5 years is a long time in pro football. No easy answer here. Saints were in continued violation. - Teams that lied about it and/or failed to cooperate with the investigation (read: New Orleans) must be punished far more harshly than any teams which cooperate. Cooperation from other teams TBD. I would argue that if either the Redskins, Bills, or Titans cooperate with the investigation then that team should face no more than fines. No competitive penalties. - New Orleans included outside (non-player, non-coach) money in its bounty pool. This is an extreme red flag and must be considered very problematic. Any team where outside money is found, must face severe sanctions regardless of points 1 or 2. Here's why: Outside money inevitably leads to organized crime. You might think "If a gambler offers money to players to make good plays, they are wasting money; the player should be doing that anyhow". Not so: the gambler pays the players for a while to do good things, then blackmails them into doing bad things based on their having taken dirty money in the past. The fact that the outside money in New Orleans may not have been tied to gambling, is irrelevant. Any outside money being allowed into a team's compensation system, is in my opinion as severe a violation as can be made from a management perspective; and on this basis alone Sean Payton (who received an email from a non-team source detailing the bounties) should be suspended and fined heavily. Ask yourself: in this case, what would an MLB commissioner do??? All of the "it's only football, which is violent" discussion is nice, but what about taking OUTSIDE MONEY to reward players??? So... if that did not happen at other teams, they should be penalized much, much less.

I don't see grounds for player suspensions unless something else comes out. The players are the employees of the team. They participated or even endorsed this, but if it was just players then it probably would be the same in almost every other team. Even Vilma offering $10K on Favre is borderline, not sure it is something they can nail him on under the CBA... a fine perhaps. Sean Payton's problem is that the NFL apparently has an email from this Ornstein guy to Sean Payton detailing the bounty scheme. The NFL previously tried to get the Saints to distance themselves from Ornstein after he was convicted of fraud, but he was still around in 2011. You know the league is going to be very unhappy with any guy who is convicted of selling non-game worn jerseys as authentic game-worn jerseys, but still is involved with offering cash for players to perform acts in a game (whether interceptions or big hits). Same guy who represented Reggie Bush. Classy situation New Orleans has going on here. Here's a few links to consider on this aspect of the story. http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2012/3/2/2840512/mike-ornstein-new-orleans-saints-bounty-program http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/14087531/why-didnt-saints-cut-ties-with-sketchy-ornstein

So, thinking about this and looking at the details. Some of the bounty money was provided not by players, nor by GW, but also by a convicted felon who was a friend/associate of the head coach but was convicted of fraud (in part for selling falsified NFL merchandise). Hypothetically, if following the money trail led back to gamblers, what would the penalties be? Can anyone support OUTSIDE money coming into an organization to pay players to do anything on the field (let alone injure an opponent)? League has to put this down hard or else the scandal will keep growing. Players putting up their own money is one thing ... Coaches paying players is worse (violates the salary cap, etc)... but having non-team employees contributing to bounties is a completely different level and is no different from gambling. Saints have to lose draft picks and be fined, Payton must be suspended for his association with the felon, and GW who is a repeat offender must be suspended 1yr+.

Now the Redskins too. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/football-insider/post/new-orleans-saints-had-bounty-system-that-paid-for-injuring-opponents-nfl-announces/2012/03/02/gIQAPNDDnR_blog.html

So... I think this is really bad. But, it may be "common practice". That's not good. If it is "common practice" then the NFL needs to take actions to prevent it from being "common practice". Here's how I would handle it if I was Goodell: 1) First rule, anyone who lied to league investigators gets a much larger penalty than those who did not cover it up. So, players who participated but never lied to the league office get nothing more than a slap on the wrist. They can use the "everybody does it" and/or "peer pressure" excuse. Players who lied to league office: 1 game suspension. Can't ever condone failure to cooperate with an investigation. 2) Coaches who participated get punished, regardless, by fine. If coach also lied about it - suspension. Personally I think G. Williams should be suspended for 1 year or more, if he ran the program and lied about it as well. If he just ran the program, I might let him off with a big fine. $100K? 3) Head coach and GM: Fines. 4) Team: Give the owner a chance to impose internal discipline. If no discipline... hit them with a loss of 4th round pick. Most likely they will let it slide though.

Aren't bonuses required to be spread out for cap accounting purposes?

You won't? Is there any evidence of this? A cash to cap system should mean that the amount of cash already committed to contracts this year is less than or equal to our salary number, unless there are a lot of roster bonuses this year. If our current cap number is $105 million and the cap is $120 million, what is our current "Cash" number?

His injury history will also be scrutinized by other teams when they consider how much to offer.

Perhaps this is the real meaning of the infamous Chad Kelly tweet.

Can you grab him tightly and pull him out of bounds for his own protection?

It's not a good rule. What would be a better rule? Do we want referees to have to judge the content of T-shirts. Happy New Year is OK. "F You Rex Ryan" is not. "Why So Serious?" is. "I like feet, too" is not. Where do you draw the line?

They should probably change the rule on dunking, but for now it is allowed. The leap however cannot be considered a prop, in my opinion, and is really not just a Green Bay tradition. It should remain allowed.

Sometimes, players are not penalized for holding either. That does not mean it should never be called. Also, wasn't he fined (not penalized), where a fine usually indicates the league thought it should have been a penalty? Sometimes, players are penalized for "driving" Tom Brady into the ground when all they did is shove him. That is a bad call, but does not mean actually driving a quarterback into the ground is OK. The rules actually explicitly allow certain celebrations including jumping into fans (which I think is fine). Apparently, dunking the ball is allowed as well (I think it should not be). If you use a goalpost and ball to simulate filming the Pats, that can be fined. Even though it is funny.

That's an issue for the league, not for Chan. Because SJ had already received one penalty this year (Jets) and there were tweets before the game indicating he knew he might be fined, one has to conclude he knew he was walking the line. Whereas, Clay Matthews having done the same celebration multiple times can be pretty sure he is in the clear. If you are arguing that the league should lighten up on celebrations with a prop, I have mixed feelings. A Happy New Year T-Shirt is not a big deal to me. Neither is Why So Serious for that matter, nor do I think that (for example) someone making a camera motion with the ball is a big deal, nor for that matter signing it with a Sharpie. Pulling out a cell phone and making a call before reaching the sidelines seems like a bit much. On the other hand, the examples of running to the middle of the field and freaking out seem over the top. The main problem is, drawing a line is not that easy. For now, there is a line drawn: No celebrations where you fall down in the end zone and no celebrations using a prop until you get back to the sideline (apparently). Not my favorite rule but it is a rule. Any reason SJ could not have run over to the Bills' sideline, then pulled up his shirt???

And, if any of these drew penalties, do you think that Sean Payton and/or Mike McCarthy would not try to nip it in the bud, rather than allowing it to continue? How many times has Clay Matthews drawn a penalty? Whether the rules are fair or not is a different issue. I agree that the taunting level of the other celebrations is higher than that of a "Happy New Year" shirt. However, if Clay Matthews drew a 15-yard penalty after his sacks, would Mike McCarthy try to stop it from occurring again??

Has Rob Gronkowski or Aaron Hernandez drawn multiple celebration penalties this season for going outside the rules? Yes, Hernandez celebrated - he did not draw a penalty and if he did would it have been premeditated and repeated? How about the Green Bay Packers, do their players celebrate? Yes, they do. Do they draw multiple unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in a single season? New Orleans Saints? Forget the 1970 NFL and preconceived notions. Please identify the teams in the NFL, in the current year, that have both a playoff record and a culture that allows me-first celebration. Please identify the showboats on the divisional leaders. Please point at the coaches of playoff teams that are not known for running a tight ship. That would make a stronger argument that the team should overlook this behavior.