As bad as the infamous New England Patriots' Spygate case was in 2007, no one got hurt except teams that lost close games. Placing a bounty on opponents is far worse.
According to an NFL investigation, New Orleans Saints players were rewarded from 2009-2011 for inflicting injuries on opposing players that resulted in them being removed from a game. A knockout was supposed to reward a defender $1.500; a "cart-off" was worth $1,000.
This story couldn't have come at a worse time for the Saints. The NFL wants to change the culture of the game by eliminating cheap shots and curtailing concussions. Retired players who suffered concussions in the NFL are suing the league. Studies continue to show how concussions cause more long-term damage than anyone in this sport realized. http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7639644/nfl-saints-bounty-story-worse-spygate
Shacks' Take: Stories like this make me laugh only because of the stupidity of those involved. There was a time when bounties were commonplace but much like hazing, modern society rightfully frowns upon anything that could cause harm. Greg Williams obviously hasn't evolved to the point he understands these types of motivational tools may seem funny within the locker room but are completely unacceptable to anyone on the outside looking in. The new rule of thumb to use within a locker room for motivation or amusement is how would you feel if it was your son or daughter who was affected by these acts.
So Greg ask yourself this if your team was playing against your son, how would you like it if he was injured because of the bounty you had on him. The one thing that makes me feel for the Saints is I doubt they were the only ones engaged in this activity, they just happened to be the ones to get caught. My guess is the league will set an example with a stiff penalty that will put an end to locker room bounties for good.
No comments:
Post a Comment