Tarnished Saints

When the news came out that the Saints Defensive coordinator Greg Williams was suspended indefinitely and head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the whole season for placing bounties on offensive players, it seemed too steep a penalty to me.  I mean football fans want to see big hits, nobody wants to watch touch football, so I figured what's the big deal about a bounty?  A major plot point in Slapshot, one of the best sports movies of all time, is when Paul Newman places a bounty on an opposing teams best player.  Today I heard the audio tape of a Greg Williams pregame speech for last years Saints vs. 49ers game and it totally changed my mind.  During the tape, he repeatedly told his players to target Niners players heads.  He kept saying "Affect the head"  and to turn their necks.  He also went on to detail all of San Fran's offensive players injuries and told his players to target them.  Even stating that they should "test" a receivers concussion.  That crossed a line in my opinion and went from heavy hitting to just plain dirty.  Maybe this goes on in locker rooms all the time but hearing it from the coaches lips really makes it real and I don't think Williams should step foot in a locker room again.  Payton may not have preached this kind of brutality to his players, but he did hire Williams and supported him after he knew what was going on, so he must pay the piper as well.  After he serves his penalty, I may root for the Saints again, I believe in paying your dues and forgiveness.  I also now believe Roger Goodell made the right decision when he suspended these coaches, and I would question any team that hires Greg WIlliams after this.  Football is about heavy hits and violent collisions, but it doesn't have to be about injuring opposing players.  That is when it changes from sport to barbarism.