NEW ORLEANS (AP) — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell upheld the suspensions of Jonathan Vilma and Will Smith on Tuesday for their
role in the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal and reduced penalties for Scott Fujita and Anthony Hargrove.
Though an appeal panel created by the NFL's labor agreement vacated the original suspensions on technical grounds, Goodell
ruled he was sticking with his decision to suspend Vilma for the season and Smith for four games.
Hargrove, a free agent defensive lineman, will face a two-game suspension once he signs with a team. He originally was hit
with eight games, but that was reduced to seven with five games already served. Fujita, who plays for Cleveland, will now
miss only one game instead of three.
Despite Goodell's new rulings, the seven-month old bounty saga is not over.
Vilma offered a response on Twitter, that read, in part, "this is not news to me pride won't let him admit he's wrong." Smith
issued a statement saying he will continue to explore his appeal options.
The players were implicated in what the NFL
said was a bounty pool run by former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg
Williams
and paid improper cash bonuses for hits that injured opponents.
The players have acknowledged a pool but denied they intended
to injure anyone.
The players can delay their suspensions by
appealing again through their labor contract, which they have three days
to do.
They could also ask a federal judge in New Orleans to revisit
their earlier request for an injunction blocking the suspensions.
Still, Goodell upheld parts, or all of the players' suspensions.
"The quality, specificity and scope of the evidence supporting the findings of conduct detrimental (to the game) are far greater
and more extensive than ordinarily available in such cases," Goodell said in a memorandum to the 32 clubs.
Goodell's new ruling comes about a month
after an appeal panel vacated the original suspensions on technical
grounds during
Week 1 of the regular season. The panel did not address the merits
of the league's investigation. It merely asked Goodell
to clarify to extent to which his ruling involved conduct
detrimental to the league, which he has the sole authority to handle,
and salary cap violations resulting from bonus payments, which
would have to be ruled upon by an arbitrator other than the
commissioner.
"In my recent meetings with the players and
their counsel, the players addressed the allegations and had an
opportunity to
tell their side of the story," Goodell wrote. "In those meetings,
the players confirmed many of the key facts disclosed in
our investigation, most particularly that the program offered cash
rewards for 'cart-offs,' that players were encouraged to
'crank up the John Deere tractor' and have their opponents carted
off the field, and that rewards were offered and paid for
plays that resulted in opposing players having to leave the field
of play."
Only Smith and Fujita have played this
season. Vilma has been recovering from offseason knee surgery and hopes
to return in
two weeks when the Saints play at Tampa Bay. The Saints linebacker
is on the physically unable to perform list for the first
six weeks of the season and Goodell's new ruling said that Vilma
can be paid for that period.
Smith issued a statement after the new rulings were announced.
"I remain frustrated with the continued
unilateral rulings by this commissioner as he continues to disregard the
facts and
assault my character," Smith said in the statement. "Let me be
clear— I never participated in a 'pay-to-injure program,' never
took the field with intent to injure another player, and never
contributed any money to hurt other players. It was my hope
that those investigating would put their arrogance and agenda
aside in order to comprehend the difference between a
'pay-for-performance
program' and a 'pay-to-injure program,' but until that day, I will
continue to pursue my appeal options through the NFLPA,
and attempt to return to work for my family, teammates, fans and
the city of New Orleans."
The NFLPA also remained critical of Goodell's decision to punish the players and the process by which he reached his decisions.
"For more than six months, the NFL has
ignored the facts, abused the process outlined in our collective
bargaining agreement
and failed to produce evidence that the players intended to injure
anyone, ever," the said in a written statement. "The only
evidence that exists is the League's gross violation of fair due
process, transparency and impartiality during this process.
Truth and fairness have been the casualties of the league's
refusal to admit that it might have made a mistake."
The players initially declined to meet with Goodell before he made his initial disciplinary rulings in early May or during
the first appeal process that lasted until the first week of the regular season.
Goodell began to reconsider his disciplinary
actions after the Sept. 7 appeal panel ruling and this time all four
players
agreed to meet with him. During those meetings the NFL produced
sworn declarations by Williams and another former defensive
assistant, Mike Cerullo, in which they stated that they observed
Vilma offering what they believed were $10,000 rewards for
knocking then-Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner and then-Minnesota
quarterback Brett Favre out of 2009-10 playoff games.
Vilma's attorney, Peter Ginsberg, did not
immediately respond to requests for comment on the ruling, though Vilma
has indicated
he would be inclined to continue to fight his punishment in
federal court. U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan has stated
that she found the NFL's disciplinary process unfair and that she
would be inclined to rule grant Vilma at least a temporary
restraining order if she believed she had jurisdiction on the
matter.
However, Berrigan also has stated that she is hesitant to rule until she is certain the players have exhausted all possible
remedies available to them through the NFL's collective bargaining agreement.
The other three players have been
represented by the NFLPA, which stated it will carefully review
Goodell's latest decision
and "protect our players' rights with vigilance," but did not
disclose any immediate plans to take the matter back to court.