Player safety has been first and foremost for Goodell for a long time now, and when the Saints ignored the warning to stop the practice of putting players squarely in harms way, they earned what they received today. On top of that, Payton was still denying any knowledge of the practice AFTER league investigators uncovered an email where he was openly discussing the bounty program with a current player. So in essence, he lied directly to Goodell. Add all that up and you can see why what happened today...happened.
This isnt over either as the players involved now have to pay the piper as well and the reason it hasnt happened yet is the league has presented all the evidence to the PA to allow them to investigate/verify the information on their own, and then the hammer will come down on them too.
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