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METAIRIE — The first three days of Organized Team Activities with Chase in Charge apparently went without a hitch for the New Orleans Saints. By all accounts, backup quarterback Chase Daniel performed his role admirably as a stand-in for estranged starter Drew Brees, whose protracted contract negotiation has the collective stomach of the Who Dat … Continue reading →
The players union claimed Wednesday that the NFL imposed a secret salary cap during the uncapped 2010 season that cost the players at least $1 billion. The complaint was filed in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, which oversees the Reggie White settlement covering NFL labor matters. But the league says the union has no grounds for the … Continue reading →
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Forced to fight for his name in a “public trial” against the NFL, Browns linebacker Scott Fujita vowed he did not participate in the New Orleans Saints’ bounty program. Fujita, suspended for three games by the league for allegedly contributing “a significant amount” of money to a pay-for-hits pool while he played for … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — With no sign of a contract breakthrough for Drew Brees on the eve of the Saints’ first offseason practice, safety Roman Harper tried to look on the bright side. “I’m actually going to really enjoy it,” a grinning Harper said of practicing against backup quarterback Chase Daniel. “We’re learning a new defense … Continue reading →
With the Saints bounty case moving to grievance hearings and court, NFL owners will talk about player safety when they meet on Tuesday. The issue is on the agenda for the owners’ session in Atlanta, where Commissioner Roger Goodell is certain to be asked about Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma’s defamation lawsuit against him. Meanwhile, Goodell’s authority for … Continue reading →
The New Orleans Saints announced Sunday the restructuring of several top management positions within the organization. The announcements were made by New Orleans Saints owner/chairman of the board Tom Benson. “With the continued growth of our holdings and various interests, it makes perfect sense at this point in time to announce the growth of our upper management … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — To hear former New Orleans Saints running back Deuce McAllister tell it Friday, it was only fitting that he would be elected to the Saints Hall of Fame along with team owner Tom Benson. After all, McAllister, who became the club’s all-time rushing leader despite numerous knee injuries that curtailed his promising … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — Two days after Drew Brees said it was “extremely frustrating” that there hasn’t been a much discussion with club officials about a long-term contract, New Orleans Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis said he respects his star quarterback’s feelings. Loomis also said Friday he didn’t take any of Brees’ comments about the slow … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — Suspended Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma filed a defamation lawsuit Thursday against NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The suit in U.S. District Court in New Orleans claims Goodell has made false statements about Vilma while discussing the NFL’s bounty investigation of the New Orleans Saints. Goodell has said Vilma was a leader of … Continue reading →
NEW YORK — Arbitrator Shyam Das heard arguments Wednesday from NFL and players union lawyers on whether Commissioner Roger Goodell can discipline players for actions that occurred before the league’s current labor agreement was signed last August. The hearing, which stemmed from the NFL’s bounty investigation of the New Orleans Saints, lasted more than two … Continue reading →
Updated at 11:50 a.m. – NEW YORK (AP) — An arbitration hearing into whether NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has jurisdiction to punish Saints players for the team’s bounties program has been set for May 30. The players’ union has asked arbitrator Stephen Burbank of the University of Pennsylvania to rule if the players should be punished for the system that the league … Continue reading →
In less than a week, the New Orleans Saints begin their organized team activities — a series of 10 practice sessions held over three weeks — likely without Drew Brees for the first time in seven seasons. While Saints’ fans all over are sitting on pins and needles wondering when Brees and the club will agree on … Continue reading →
NEW YORK — The NFL players’ union grievance against the league in the Saints bounties scandal will be heard Wednesday. The union claims NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell doesn’t have the authority to hand out discipline for player conduct that occurred before the current collective bargaining agreement was finalized last August. The players … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — In what has already been and will be a year of firsts for the New Orleans Saints, the team’s coaching staff experienced another one over the weekend. The Saints had their first on-field practice without suspended head coach Sean Payton when they conducted a three-day minicamp for their five draft picks … Continue reading →
NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL players’ union grievance against the league in the Saints bounties scandal will be heard Wednesday. The union claims NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell doesn’t have the authority to hand out discipline for player conduct that occurred before the current collective bargaining agreement was finalized last August. The players argue that a CBA … Continue reading →
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Brandon Stokley was ready for a reunion, not retirement. The 14th-year wide receiver from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, rejoined the Denver Broncos — and old pal Peyton Manning — this offseason after missing almost all of 2011. Stokley played in just two games for the New York Giants last … Continue reading →
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants boasted that Rueben Randle was NFL-ready after taking the LSU receiver in the second round of draft, and the kid didn’t disappoint as the Super Bowl champions opened a rookie minicamp on Friday. Randle went up high to catch a pass along the sideline and later burned … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — The New Orleans Saints coaching staff will get a chance to see the five players they selected in the recent NFL draft when they hold a rookie minicamp from Friday through Sunday. Five practices will be held with two on Friday and Saturday and one more on Sunday for the 64 players who … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Suspended former Saints defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove says he is disappointed his sworn statement regarding the NFL’s bounty investigation was leaked and also that the league has “grossly mischaracterized” his words. In a statement emailed to The Associated Press on Wednesday by his agent, Phil Williams, Hargrove said he hoped the NFL would not discuss the signed … Continue reading →
Updated at 11 a.m. – NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Former Saints defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove describes in a sworn statement how he was told by ex-defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and current New Orleans assistant head coach Joe Vitt to deny the existence of a bounty program to NFL investigators. In a document obtained Monday by The Associated Press, Hargrove acknowledges that he … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma appealed his seasonlong suspension under the NFL’s bounty investigation, which named him as a ringleader of the cash-for-hits system. In papers filed Monday, Vilma argued that Commissioner Roger Goodell should not hear the appeal and asked for a delay in the process until the jurisdictional … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — A person with knowledge of the surgery said New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram underwent an arthroscopic procedure on his knee. The surgery was performed Thursday, the person said on condition of anonymity because the team has not announced it. The prognosis is for Ingram to return well before training … Continue reading →
NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL Players Association filed a grievance challenging NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s authority to suspend four current and former New Orleans players who took part in the Saints’ bounty program from 2009-11. The complaint, filed Thursday night, claims that Goodell is prohibited from punishing players for any aspect of a pay-for-hits program occurring … Continue reading →
NEW YORK — A former U.S. attorney hired by the NFL to evaluate its investigation of the New Orleans Saints’ bounty program said Thursday the evidence shows players received payments for hits on targeted opponents. Mary Jo White said in a conference call that evidence in the league’s investigation of the three-year pay-for-pain system provided … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — Short-handed and disappointed, but hardly crippled, the New Orleans Saints may at last be able to put bounty scandals behind them and focus on putting together a fourth-straight playoff season. When the NFL first announced as many as 27 current or ex-Saints participated in a cash-for-hits bounty program, seemingly all Saints regulars … Continue reading →
Hoping to close the book on bounties, the NFL suspended New Orleans Saints defensive captain Jonathan Vilma without pay for all of next season Wednesday and gave shorter bans to three other players for their leading roles in the team’s cash-for-hits system that knocked key opponents out of games from 2009-11. Defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove, now … Continue reading →
The New Orleans Saints finally learned Wednesday how their roster would be affected for the 2012 season by the bounty scandal that rocked the football world earlier this offseason. Perhaps it was a coincidence, maybe not. But two months to the day the NFL announced an illegal pay-for-performance bounty program targeting opponents existed in the Saints locker … Continue reading →
OCEANSIDE, Calif. (AP) — Former NFL star Junior Seau was found dead at his home Wednesday, authorities said. Police Lt. Karen Laser confirmed the death but released no other details. U-T San Diego reported that a 911 call came from the home at 10 a.m. Seau was a standout linebacker with the University of Southern California … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — The New Orleans Saints announced Monday that 18 rookie free agents have agreed to terms with the team following the conclusion of the NFL draft. Two Louisiana natives — safety Jerico Nelson of Destrehan High School and defensive lineman Tyrunn Walker of New Iberia — are among the group. Nelson played in … Continue reading →
Updated at 5:45 p.m. – Hoping to close the book on bounties, the NFL suspended New Orleans Saints defensive captain Jonathan Vilma without pay for all of next season Wednesday and gave shorter bans to three other players for their leading roles in the team’s cash-for-hits system that knocked key opponents out of games from 2009-11. Defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove, now with … Continue reading →
Text Wednesday of the statement released by the NFL on penalties for players involved in the New Orleans Saints’ pay-for-performance/bounty program: Four players — Scott Fujita, Anthony Hargrove, Will Smith, and Jonathan Vilma — were notified today that they have been suspended without pay for conduct detrimental to the NFL as a … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — After addressing a need with their first pick of the NFL draft in the third round Friday night, the New Orleans Saints did what they normally do in the latter rounds on Saturday. Armed with single selections in the fourth through sixth rounds when the draft resumed Saturday morning, the Saints added depth … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — Other than not having suspended head coach Sean Payton having his hands in the draft for the first time in seven years, there wasn’t a lot different about how the New Orleans Saints went about adding to their roster Friday and Saturday. Maybe there was one other difference: The Saints had no picks … Continue reading →
Saints draft picks 2 Forfeited. 3 (89) Akiem Hicks, dt, Regina (Canada). 4 (122) Nick Toon, wr, Wisconsin. 5 (162) Corey White, db, Samford. 6 (179) Andrew Tiller, g, Syracuse. 7 (234) Marcel Jones, ot, Nebraska
With no selections in the first or second rounds, the Saints had to wait almost 27 hours after the draft began Thursday night to make their first pick in the third round - the 89th player overall - and used it to take defensive tackle Akiem Hicks of the University of Regina in Canada. “We’re real excited about our pick, he’s a guy we really studied a lot,” said Saints assistant head coach Joe Vitt Continue reading →
METAIRIE — Embattled Saints General Manager Mickey Loomis had plenty to discuss before Thursday night’s NFL draft, even if his club had no first-round pick. Topics on the table included wiretapping, Drew Brees’ contract talks and New Orleans’ bounty system. Loomis candidly addressed them all, and more. .He was “angry” about the recent wiretapping … Continue reading →
METAIRIE, La. (AP) - Saints general manager Mickey Loomis says he's "angry" about allegations that his Superdome booth was wired so he could eavesdrop on opposing coaches radio conversations. Loomis says he has a clear conscience and welcomes a joint investigation by Louisiana state police and the FBI. Loomis also says he understands that Drew Brees' next contract will be the most … Continue reading →
AVONDALE — New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton, suspended for the 2012 season for misleading NFL security looking into a bounty program the league said the team ran from 2009-11, said Wednesday he looks forward to doing the things he normally can’t do during his time away from the game. Payton spoke with reporters Wednesday … Continue reading →
In the six drafts since Sean Payton became the head coach of the New Orleans Saints in 2006, the organization has made a living mining mid- to late-round talent. If they didn’t contribute immediately, many of them eventually grew into prominent roles with time and proper nurturing in Payton’s system. All-Pro guards Jahri Evans and Carl … Continue reading →
NEW YORK — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says the league is still doing interviews regarding player punishments that likely will be handed down for the Saints’ pay-for-hits bounty system. Speaking to reporters at an NFL draft event on Wednesday, Goodell said he doesn’t expect to issue a decision this week, but the league is “in … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — One day after an already trying offseason was taken to another level, New Orleans Saints assistant head coach Joe Vitt on Tuesday did his best to put the franchise’s nervous fan base at ease going forward into the 2012 season. Continue reading →
AVONDALE — New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton, suspended for the 2012 season for misleading NFL security looking into a bounty program the league said the team ran from 2009-11, said Wednesday he looks forward to doing the things he normally can’t do during his time away from the game. Payton spoke with reporters Wednesday … Continue reading →
METAIRIE — New Orleans Saints outside linebacker Jonathan Casillas has rejoined the club for offseason workouts. Saints assistant head coach Joe Vitt said the restricted free agent signed the tender from New Orleans on Tuesday. The Saints had offered Casillas a little less than $1.3 million for next season and would have … Continue reading →
Updated at 5 p.m. – NEW ORLEANS (AP) — While state police and the FBI start a wiretapping probe into the Saints and general manager Mickey Loomis, assistant head coach Joe Vitt is calling the allegations that Loomis’ had his Superdome booth wired so he could listen to opposing coaches “ludicrous.” Vitt calls the suggestion that Loomis listened in to opposing coaches’ … Continue reading →
NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Saints denied an ESPN report using an anonymous source that General Manager Mickey Loomis’ booth in the Superdome was wired so he could listen to opposing coaches’ radio communications during games. ESPN could not determine if the system was ever used. The report on Monday’s “Outside the Lines” said … Continue reading →