Bad sports, good sports: There is no place for bounties in football

Posted on March 5th, 2012 by Alan Spoll

Professional football is a violent game. No matter what rules the league puts in place, that basic fact will remain. The NFL can, should, and will continue to legislate the game to attempt to reduce injury, particularly the long-term variety, but in the end, a game that involves huge men tackling each other is going to be dangerous. When a team actually rewards its players for injuring opposing players, then, you can be sure that things will get ugly quickly. This week, the NFL revealed details of a “bounty” program that was in effect for the New Orleans Saints during their Super Bowl season of 2009, as well as the rest of the tenure of former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. Players were given off-the-books bonuses for hits that knocked opposing players out of the game.

Back in the late 1980s, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Buddy Ryan set bounties on opposing players, most notably in the “Bounty Bowl,” a game against the rival Dallas Cowboys, during which an Eagles linebacker concussed Cowboys kickers Luis Zenedjas, allegedly to collect a cash reward set out by Ryan. Zenedjas, who had previously played for the Eagles, was certain that the concussion he sustained was intentional, and coach Jimmy Johnson was quite outspoken about and outraged by the incident.

The 2009 Saints were a feel-good story for the NFL. They brought a title to hurricane-ravaged New Orleans, led by quarterback Drew Brees, an underdog story if there ever was one. The country loved that Saints team, which makes these new allegations that much more shocking. Williams, the former head coach of the Buffalo Bills, led that Saints defense to the big game, racking up turnovers, sacks, and general mayhem along the way. The fact that he did so by incenting his players to injure guys on the opposing team will certainly have an impact on how that Saints team is remembered. No punishments have been announced, but you can be certain that the league will come down hard on both the Saints and on Williams, who is currently the defensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams. After the news about the Saints, stories continued to come out about Williams’ tenure with the Bills and the Redskins. It appears that his bounty program was not unique to his time with the Saints.

How hard should the league be on Williams? With the amount of time that has been spent discussing concussions over the past couple of years, and with the number of rule changes that have been put in place to protect the players, especially the quarterbacks, I can not imagine the NFL going easy on Williams. I would not be shocked if he were banned for life. This is the time to make a statement, and league commissioner Roger Goodell has shown that he does not shy away from the dramatic reaction. As a fan, I think he should do so. I like the hitting in football, and understand that players are at some risk when they go out on the field, but there is no place in the game for intentionally injuring another player. Paying players to do so is inexcusable.

Bad sports, continued:

2) Last Monday evening, the Daytona 500 was finally run, a full day and a half after it was originally scheduled to happen. The race was the usual mess that all restrictor plate races seem to be, with lots of wrecks and a bunch of pointless pack driving by a bunch of cars that have been reduced to a shell of themselves by the power-sapping plates mandated by NASCAR to slow them down on the giant superspeedways of Daytona and Talladega. This one had a twist, though. During a caution well into the race, Juan Pablo Montoya was speeding around the course to catch up to the pack before the pending restart. Something broke on the car, and he lost control just as he was passing two trucks that had been sent out onto the track to keep things dry by using actual jet engines to heat up the track. He slammed into one of the trucks, which caused a huge explosion and a volatile fire due to all the jet fuel the truck was carrying. Montoya and the truck driver were okay, but it was a very scary scene.

3) Major League Baseball changed its playoff format this week, adding two more wildcard teams to the postseason. Now, each league will have two wildcards who will play each other in a single game after the regular season to determine which of those teams moves on to play a full playoff series against one of the division winners. I know some people disagree, but I have always liked the fact that baseball did not have half the teams in the league make the playoffs, like basketball and hockey do. It really meant something to make the playoffs in baseball, especially before the first wildcard was added in 1994. With each addition, MLB waters down its once exclusive post-season.

4) Throughout his NBA career, Lamar Odom was often considered a bit of a mutt, or a player who never played up to his potential. With the Los Angeles Lakers in 2011, Odom won the league’s Sixth Man award for a team that made it to the NBA finals, somewhat erasing the earlier perceptions of his career. This year, with the Dallas Mavericks, Odom is back to his old ways. He has dogged it for most of the year, and was actually sent to the league’s developmental league on Friday. Before he ever played a game there, though, he was recalled to the big club. Regardless, his fall has been quite precipitous.

5) When a male driver sticks up for himself, he is tough. Just like in other areas, though, when a woman does the same thing, she is branded with much harsher names. A sportscaster in San Diego, Ross Shimabuku, was suspended this week for essentially saying that NASCAR’s Danica Patrick was a bitch. I have followed Patrick’s career, and I see nothing more than a driver who doesn’t want to be pushed around. The sexism in sports continues to amaze me.

Good sports:

1) New Detroit Tigers first baseman Prince Fielder, he of the new $200 million plus contract, hit a ball about as far as it’s ever been hit during a batting practice this week. Including the roll, the ball reportedly traveled 611 feet. Now that’s some power.

2) Brian Harman, a rookie on the PGA tour, shot a course and tournament record 61 on Friday at the Honda Classic in Florida. That’s a crazy score.

3) Speaking of the Honda Classic, Rory McIlroy took over the number one sport in the world golf rankings after winning the tournament on Sunday, beating Tiger Woods by two strokes with a 12-under performance for the weekend.

4) Hiroshi Hoketsu, an equestrian from Japan, qualified for this year’s London olympics on Thursday. Why is this news? Hoketsu is 70 years old.

Bad sports, good sports appears every Monday

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Alan Spoll

Alan Spoll is a software quality assurance director from the suburbs of Philadelphia where he lives with his wonderful wife and children. He has spent his entire life as a passionate fan of the Eagles, Phillies, Sixers, Flyers, and Penn State. Recent Phillies success aside, you will understand his natural negativity. Follow me on Twitter - @DocAlan02