Appeals for New Orleans Saints bounty scandal to be heard on Tuesday - NFL News
The National Football League (NFL) confirmed that appeals related to the punishments handed down to the New Orleans Saints will be heard on Thursday, April 5, 2012 at their New York Headquarters.
Commissioner, Roger Goodell, will hear review the appeals handed down to Saints head coach, Sean Payton, assistant coach, Joe Vitt and general manager, Mickey Loomis on Thursday while a decision on the appeals will be handed down within days.
The league had previously delayed the hearings but Goodell had maintained that the hearings would take place within this week.
The day of the hearings was confirmed by league spokesman, Greg Aiello in an email to the media.
All three defendants received long term suspensions by the NFL for their involvement in the New Orleans Saints pay-to-injure programme.
Payton received a one year suspension with no contact with his franchise for his involvement in the scandal while Loomis and Vitt received eight and six-game suspensions respectively.
All three were accused of knowing about the program which ran for three seasons while doing nothing to stop it.
Payton received much severe punishments after repeatedly denying the existence of the scheme during an earlier league investigation.
The Saints were finally busted after the NFL got their hands on irrefutable evidence and released a 50,000 page report detailing the bounty program in early March.
The league is currently talking and sharing information with the players union NFL Players Association (NFLPA) as it looks to announce suspensions and fines for the 22 to 27 players alleged to be involved in the scheme.
The Saints maintained a bounty pool of approximately $ 50,000 under then defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. Players received $ 1,000 to 1,500 for injuring or knocking out their opponents during games.
Williams who joined the St. Louis Rams this year has been suspended indefinitely from working with any NFL team and has decided not to appeal that decision.
The severe punishments are a first in league history and the commissioner has received both praise as well as criticism for his decision.
More news over the affair will be released soon as the appeals take place but it seems unlikely that the NFL will overturn or reduce any suspensions.
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