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Jonathan Vilma: Either Totally Innocent or Totally Screwed

By Jack Sharkey
June 5, 2012; Metairie, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma (51) during a minicamp session at the team's practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE
June 5, 2012; Metairie, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma (51) during a minicamp session at the team's practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

I'm purposely choosing to ignore the Drew Brees situation, which leaves me paying closer attention to the Jonathan Vilma-Roger Goodell cage match. Vilma walked out on the hearings in New York yesterday calling the proceedings a "sham." I'm really struggling to try to understand what he's up to.

I'm not looking to make a judgement here about either Goodell or Vilma, that's just too far above my pay grade. But I will say that I can only think of four reasons for Vilma's public war with the commissioner. They are...

  1. Vilma is the most innocent, wrongly accused and persecuted person in the history of the NFL
  2. He knows he's screwed so he's throwing everything he's got into the court of public opinion, in an attempt to save his reputation
  3. He's in the midst of the most brilliant legal manuevering since Perry Mason
  4. He's delusional

The truth is in there somewhere, but I'll be damned if I can see any logic to it beyond what I've got here.

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