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Fleur-de-Links: October 19, 2012

Your daily collection of New Orleans Saints news and opinion. TODAY'S HEADLINE: Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue appointed to preside over BountyFarce appeals.

By David "Satch" Kelly
Ronald Martinez

TWEETS:

The NFL fined Washington and Buffalo $20,000 apiece for injury reporting situations involving Robert Griffin III and Mario Williams.

'Whistleblower' says NFL lying about his bounty knowledge

One more wild card: If Tagliabue significantly reduces player punishments, coaches, mgmt would have to demand same treatment

I gotta game sun!! I'm ready to hit someone now!!!

lol you a fool ": Vilma vs Goodell would make a good episode of Law and Order."

The more you sweat in peacetime, the less you bleed during war. -Chinese Proverbs quotes

Game in less than 48 hrs!!! Are u ready? If not get prepared...

It won't be a letdown for me. To the contrary, it would be at long last a legit ruling. That's all I want.

Precisely. RT : I am not rational when it comes to Tags. Without him Saints would be in San Antonio.

Kiss of death RT : I love Paul Tagliabue with all my heart and always will. Whatever he says goes. I trust him implicitly.

Someone is going to need to explain to Duncan what all of this means in a non-arrogant way, of course.

NFLPA asked Goodell to recuse himself. He did. Do they now ask Tagliabue to recuse himself? Murky case keeps getting murkier.

Goodell stepping aside for Tags is the equivalent of the Saints letting Parcells be the interim coach.

Paul Tagliabue can go a long way to appeasing fans if he makes the 10/30 Bounty hearing "costume required."

Don't get excited about Goodell recusing himself. Tagliabue & him are friends & he hand picked RG as his replacement. He'll uphold decision

^^^^^^THIS!^^^^^^ Couldn't agree more!

Appealing Roger Goodell's suspensions to Paul Tagliabue is like appealing the dangers of diabetes to McDonalds.

RT Best thing for NFL's case is for Tagliabue to at least slightly reduce the suspensions & provide lengthy written basis.

NFL announced it will hold hearings for Vilma, Fujita, Smith and Hargrove on Oct. 30 at a place determined by Paul Tagliabue.

NFL points out league attorney Jeff Pash, NFL executive Harold Henderson and special counsel Jay Moyer have handled Commish appeals in past

Great week of practice... And I'm excited about playing in Florida this weekend... Get to see family...

Replacing RG with Tagliabue obviously won't satisfy players, but more important question is will it satisfy Judge Berrigan?

Well, I'm glad it only took nine months and several appeals processes for Roger Goodell to NOT act like a totalitarian jackass.

Pretty huge precedent set here as well for a recusal, at a time when Commissioner powers are under target from the players

Vilma does Denver RT NFL also announces Oct. 30 as the new bounty appeal hearing date

Good news: if Tagliabue doesn't sleep, he only needs to read a page every 6 seconds until Tuesday.

Seems to many I'm speaking to that NFL trying to do all it can to mollify the federal judge in NO and keep this from full-blown court case

Barring drastic changes in the penalties assigned to various parties, doubt this alone is enough to keep it out of court

Makes sense that Tagliabue would need some time to get fully caught up. Players can participate in games until process complete, obviously..

Goodell statement confirms the obvious: NFL seeking to end Bountygate w/this move ... "To bring this matter to a prompt and fair conclusion"

Kromer "Vilma looked really good all week" Said they will talk about it as a staff on when/if to activate him.

In addition to the bombshell on Tagliabue stepping in for Goodell on bounty appeal, penalty for Redskins handling of RG3 concussion coming..

Jimmy Graham is listed as questionable for Sunday Kromer said

I have been in touch with Roger. He has formally notified me that he will recused himself. Paul Tagliabue will step in.

Check out photos and video bios of the 2012 !

The NFL was completely fine with Reggie White's "Smash for Cash" bounty program:

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WEEK 7: SAINTS @ BUCS:

Saints TE Graham questionable, WR Moore probable against Bucs | wwltv.com New Orleans
The Saints will go into Sunday’s key NFC South showdown at Tampa Bay with a nearly full roster. But they won’t know whether they’ll have tight end Jimmy Graham until the morning of the game. Graham was limited in practice Friday and is questionable.

Status of New Orleans Saints players Jon Vilma, Jimmy Graham for Sunday's game still uncertain - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com
Lance Moore, Jahri Evans, Jabari Greer, Scott Shanle among the players listed as probable

Preview: Rested Saints visit confident Buccaneers
(Sports Network) - It's an arduous task to put back-to-back impressive wins together in the NFL given that defenses can make adjustments on the fly.

Mickles: No time for Saints’ Aaron Kromer to reflect | Saints | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, LA
The last thing Aaron Kromer is going to do this week is spend time thinking about what he learned as the New Orleans Saints’ interim coach.…

Aaron Kromer not focusing on last game as Saints boss | ProFootballTalk
Aaron Kromer, like all assistant coaches, wants to be a head coach one day. But as he enters the final week of his interim-to-the-interim gig, he’s not thinking about the future. "I can’t think about those things," Kromer said, via Sheldon Mickles of the Baton Rouge Advocate.

New Orleans Saints lacking their usual 'killer instinct:' First-and-10 - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com
Saints columnist Mike Triplett offers 10 observations in Part 2 of his weekly column

Damage Control Week 7: New Orleans Saints vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com
Noted fitness expert Mackie Shilstone is writing about injuries in the NFL this season and will take a look at the injury report for the New Orleans Saints and their opponent each week.

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BOUNTYFARCE:

Bringing Paul Tagliabue into New Orleans Saints bounty investigation is best move NFL has made to date - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com
Tagliabue's involvement might do more harm than good for players' legal case, but it adds much-needed credibility to NFL's investigation

Roger Goodell recuses himself from New Orleans Saints bounty appeal hearings - New Orleans Saints Football NFL News - NOLA.com
DeMaurice Smith says former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue will step in for Goodell at Tuesday's hearings

Tagliabue to take over appeals from Goodell - NFC South Blog - ESPN
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has recused himself from hearing the appeals of player suspensions in the New Orleans Saints’ bounty saga. I&rs

League says parameters haven’t been set for appeal hearing | ProFootballTalk
Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma contends that the NFL won't be producing former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and former Saints assistant Mike Cerullo to testify at Tuesday's appeal hearing regarding Vilma's re-issued bounty suspension.

Tagliabue’s bounty hearing will be held on October 30 | ProFootballTalk
The NFL officially has announced that Commissioner Roger Goodell has handed the baton to former Commissioner Paul Tagliabue as to the appeal hearing in the bounty cases. The league's full statement is right here.

Goodell recuses himself from bounty appeal hearing | ProFootballTalk
In a move that will make the ultimate discipline applied to the players involved in the Saints bounty case even stronger, Commissioner Roger Goodell has recused himself from Tuesday's appeal hearing. The announcement came from NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith on Twitter.

NFL’s statement on appoint of Paul Tagliabue to handle bounty appeal hearing | ProFootballTalk
[Editor's note: The NFL has issued a statement explained the decision of Commissioner Roger Goodell to recuse himself from the appeal hearing in the bounty case. The full text of it appears below.

METAIRIE: Former NFL Commisioner Paul Tagliabue to hear Bountygate player appeals | New Orleans Saints | The Sun Herald
Commissioner Roger Goodell recused himself; steps aside;

Roger Goodell steps aside from Saints bounty appeals - NFL.com
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will recuse himself from the appeals process in the New Orleans Saints' bounty cases, the league said Friday.

The NFL Was Completely Fine With "Smash-For-Cash" Bounty Programs 16 Years Ago
Of course it's all about the timing. The league knew about, and didn't care about bounty programs, back in the days when nobody cared about concussions. But now, facing lawsuits from hundreds of retired players, and safety concerns from parents, players and fans at all levels of the game, the Saints bounty scandal is barely about standing up for the game's integrity, and all about the opportunity for some masterful PR. It's been said that lots of teams have some sort of bounty program, the Saints just had the misfortune of getting caught. That's not strictly true, as we know the league has been aware of others in the past. The Saints just had the misfortune of getting caught now, at a time the league could really use a scapegoat for more fundamental problems.

Jimmy Kennedy unloads on NFL, Goodell | ProFootballTalk
Last week, the NFL inexplicably outed former Vikings defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy as the original bounty whistleblower in a memo to all teams that was later posted on a league-owned website. Kennedy isn't happy.

Forecast: Who did bounty scandal hurt the most? | wwltv.com New Orleans
Who’s been hurt the most by the bounty disaster besides Saints fans who’ve had to pay hard-earned cash to watch a 2012 season set on fire before it even started?

Vilma says NFL won’t produce Williams or Cerullo at appeal hearing | ProFootballTalk
For Vilma to not receive a chance to question Williams and Cerullo makes a mockery of the process. The NFL surely will seek refuge in the "it’s not a court proceeding" mantra. But the league can’t have it both ways. Using sworn statements makes it enough like a court proceeding to compel the witnesses to answer questions under oath. It’s simply unfair to base suspensions on written testimony without giving the person whose livelihood and reputation is affected adversely by the outcome to ask questions of the persons who signed their names to the documents.

Goodell steps aside from bounty case, Tagliabue to take over | wwltv.com New Orleans
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will step aside from the bounty penalty process, the league said Friday, allowing former commissioner Paul Tagliabue to step in as the judge in the appeals hearings in New York.

Paul Tagliabue to hear bounty appeals | Saints | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, LA
NEW YORK — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell appointed predecessor Paul Tagliabue to hear the appeals of four players suspended in the Saints …

Jimmy Kennedy issues statement pointing out Goodell "lies" in Saints bounty memo
The credibility of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell continues to take hits in the BountyGate saga.

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LAGNIAPPE:

Saints DE Wilson escapes Chicago projects to live life-long NFL dream | wwltv.com New Orleans
It’s not that you can call Martez Wilson prophetic. More like a dreamer, one who saw a future and found a way to make it happen.

Saints all-time top five receivers | Saints | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, LA
1. Marcus Colston (2006-present) Career highlights: 477 Receptions, 6,884 yards, 14.0 yards per-catch, 52 TDs. All-Rookie, 2006; Team’s re…

Saints QB Brees on pace to break record for passing yards | Saints | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, LA
After a tough start to the season in which he completed just 54.7 percent of his passes in the first games, New Orleans Saints quarterback …

Joe Horn passes torch to WR Marques Colston | Saints | The Advocate — Baton Rouge, LA
METAIRIE — Joe Horn would like to officially pass the torch. Marques Colston is now the best wide receiver in New Orleans Saints history. "…

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VIDEO:

Aaron Kromer's Interview 10/19/12

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