New Orleans Saints interim head coach Joe Vitt defends suspended players in bounty scandal - NFL News
Even after the National Football League (NFL) on Monday released a huge amount of evidence which they had collected on the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal, the franchise’s interim head coach, Joe Vitt, continued to defend his players.
The NFL evidence showed that Saints players were fully embracing of bounties and even pledged their own funds to the bounty pool.
Evidence also included a ledger of payments as well as presentations from the Saints which emphasised bounties on opposition players.
Current Saints players Jonathan Vilma and Will Smith alongside former Saints players, Anthony Hargrove and Scott Fujita were suspended by commissioner, Roger Goodell, for their leadership roles in the scandal and the evidence released by the league also
backs its claims that all four were heavily involved in the bounty programme from 2009-11.
Vitt though remains unconvinced and in a statement released on Wednesday, said that his players never went out with intent to injure opposition players.
"It cannot be overemphasized enough that none of our players, particularly those facing suspension, ever crossed the white line with the intent to injure an opponent,"
He also said that he remains proud of the players and will back them completely to clear their names which have been tarnished after being linked to the bounty scandal.
"I am proud of our players and stand behind them 100 percent and will do whatever I can to help them restore their good names.”
"I maintain my pledge to the commissioner to be an agent of change in helping finding new ways and practices to help make our game a safer game and more constructive conversations with the league on this matter."
Included in the evidence released by the league was the claim alongside corroborating evidence that Vitt himself had pledged $ 5,000 for a hit on former Minnesota Vikings quarterback, Brett Favre, ahead of the meeting between the Saints and Vikings in the
2010 National Football Conference (NFC) Championship game.
Vitt denies the allegations and has also told Goodell that he is prepared to take a lie-detector test to clear out his name.
The assistant coach faces a six-game ban at the start of the 2012-13 season for his role in the bounty scandal.
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