Report: Sean Payton banned from 'any contact' with Saints, other coaches

Posted: 10:23 AM ET April 17, 2012

By Will Brinson | Senior NFL Blogger

Payton's banned from contact with anyone on the Saints in 2012. (Getty Images)
Sean Payton got a hefty one-year suspension from the NFL and when he appealed that suspension to Roger Goodell, he got the Heisman from the commissioner. So we knew 2012 wouldn't be a fun year for Payton.

But according to a report from Adam Schefter of ESPN, it's worse than imagined: Payton is "not allowed to have any contact with the Saints organization or anyone around the NFL."

Additionally, any contact with coaching friends or members of the Saints organization must be reported to league executive Ray Anderson, which is an interesting little application of the honor code when it comes to Payton's suspension.

Payton's suspension begins Monday and ends in February, following the Super Bowl. So, if Payton does, say, bump into Mickey Loomis at Bed, Bath and Beyond on a Saturday in May, he has to ring up Anderson and self-report a violation of his suspension.

The obvious conundrum for Payton is this: he could break the honor code and keep his fingerprints on the 2012 Saints. And he could conceivably get away with it. But (in the hypothetical that he attempted to do so) if he got caught without self-reporting these violations, he might be in big trouble when reinstatement time rolls around.

Of course, from a practical standpoint, it's an absolute disaster: the people in the Saints organization and the NFL are, one assumes, his circle of friends. Surely he has compatriots outside the game, but if he wants to get dinner with a good friend in the Saints organization, it's unlikely the NFL would look on too kindly.

Tags: Bounties, Bountygate, New Orleans Saints, NFL

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Surveyed coaches, players say Lewis comments are far-fetched

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- Call your home security company. There might not be an NFL season.

Lock up the kids.

There might not be an NFL season.

Ravens LB Ray Lewis posits that one of the consequences of a lost NFL season will be an increase in crime. (Getty Images) Hide the money. Put the jewels in the safe-deposit box. Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis thinks lawlessness is on the way. Get your six-shooter cleaned. The Wild, Wild West is coming.

I've heard some dumb comments by NFL players in the past, but when Lewis told ESPN's Sal Paolantonio that crime would go up if the NFL doesn't play this season, it had to rank up there with some of the worst.

If Lewis had said there might be more arrests of players without football, we'd believe him.

But more fan arrests? More crime?

Where can I get an assault rifle to make sure I am safe?

I took what Lewis said to some players and coaches here Monday for the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Celebrity Golf Tournament. On the pristine grounds of TPC Sawgrass, where I witnessed many a ball being hit into the water on the famed No. 17 hole, I wanted to know if NFL people thought Lewis was as off-base as I did.

Most did, but some weren't so sure.

"It's a little exaggerated," Giants defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka said. "It's not too far-fetched to think not having an institution like the NFL to take up time during the day could do something. There is going to be some negative consequences from a social aspect."

"I don't know if he was as serious as the media made it out to be," Tampa Bay offensive tackle Jeremy Trueblood said. "But I guess it's a possibility. What else are people going to do on Sunday?"

Go to the beach? Watch a movie? Yard work? Cut their toenails?

Last time I checked those are all better options than, say, robbing a bank or stealing your neighbor's stereo.

Look, we love the NFL. It is a way of life for a lot of us. But to think without it we'd become a society of criminals is absurd.

"I wouldn't go that strong to say that crime is going to increase," Bucs receiver Michael Clayton said. "That's a little too much."

Some players simply laughed at the notion that crime rates would go up.

"The crime rate will go up if there is no football?" asked Jacksonville Jaguars special-teams ace Montell Owens. "He said that? I didn't hear that. I haven't really given that much thought. I'm sure they'll [the fans] find something else to do."

If Lewis truly believes that, shouldn't he have facts showing that crime numbers increase when there are no NFL games from February to July? Is there data to back that up?

"I don't know how he [Lewis] can make that kind of determination without having a lot more facts," Kiwanuka said.

I don't either. But just in case, I'm going to take Owens up on his offer.

"You live in Jacksonville, right?" he said. "I'll protect you."

Whew! Now I don't have to get the brass knuckles and take martial arts classes.

But you better do something to be ready for the lawlessness.

Ray Lewis said it's coming. And isn't he a top sociologist and not just the best middle linebacker ever?

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Ryan leads Falcons workouts sans coaches, equipment, facilities

BUFORD, Ga. -- Matt Ryan arrived early and stayed late.

While he and his teammates are locked out of the Atlanta Falcons' facility in nearby Flowery Branch, Ga., about 30 of them convened for a player-organized workout at a field 15 minutes away.

Falcons safety Thomas DeCoud hauls in an interception during a player-organized workout in Buford, Ga. (AP) No coaches, no trainers. No pads, and no helmets. No state-of-the-art equipment.

All these guys had to work with were a few footballs, some towels and the sheer excitement of street ball in the neighborhood.

Without the coaches' communication, Ryan is the leader the team is turning to.

"We've all been doing it long enough to understand what's beneficial, how to come out here and get it done," Ryan said. "You kind of put on your coaching hat and work on some of the things you want to work on, which is good. We have some stuff scripted and we'll get out and work on the things we need to work on."

For the past few weeks, Ryan and some receivers have met to practice routes. First-round draft choice Julio Jones has met with his new quarterback to get a head start on learning the offensive system. Jones is still recovering from a stress fracture in his foot, though, and has been unable to run.

This past Tuesday, the defense joined the offense for the first time this offseason to do 7-on-7 drills. It's the time of year when minicamps and organized team activities typically begin. But with the lockout in full force, the players figured it was time to practice on their own so they're not left behind if a 2011 season is confirmed.

"Everything about this offseason has been unique and different," Ryan said. "It's certainly nice to have a couple of years in the league and understand what it takes to prepare to get ready so you can do it on your own and you can do it with these guys."

The workout was scheduled for 11 a.m., and Ryan was one of the first to show up. Falcons players trickled in as the session began 15 minutes later. Also appearing were a few free agents unsure if they'll be on the squad -- linebackers Mike Peterson and Stephen Nicholas, and wide receiver Brian Finneran. The Falcons front office told Finneran before the lockout began they have no initial plans to re-sign him.

Nicholas turned down a tender the Falcons offered as he hopes to lock up a long-term contract. Reports indicate Detroit and Denver are interested in Nicholas, who lost his starting position to linebacker Sean Weatherspoon in 2010.

The Falcons have shown interest in re-signing Peterson, who turns 35 in June.

"Being in that limbo and not knowing is tough," Peterson said. "But them expressing they want me back, I took the approach that this is where I'm going to be. This is exactly where I want to be."

While Ryan was in command of the offense during drills, Peterson coached the defense. Middle linebacker Curtis Lofton signaled defensive calls, looking smooth for someone who's had offseason procedures on both knees. Wide receiver Michael Jenkins caught two deep passes in the end zone. Free safety Thomas DeCoud, sporting a blue vintage X-Men shirt, shifted momentum in mid-air while twisting his body to haul in an interception. The team practiced for 45 minutes, concluding at noon.

It didn't look like the structured practices usually held at 4400 Falcon Parkway. Given the uncertainty of whether there will be a 2011 season or not, these players looked to be making the most of it.

"The best part is seeing the old faces you haven't seen since we all got out of town," Weatherspoon said. "To get out of here and get some work in together, it means a lot. It shows we're committed to taking another step."

The competitive fire is still there, though. DeCoud said one of the main reasons Atlanta is organizing these workouts is in response to Drew Brees rallying the Saints together. DeCoud was working out with an unnamed Saints offensive lineman who told him he was traveling back to Louisiana to participate in a Brees-organized workout.

"I said, 'OK, we've got to start doing something now because I don't want to fall behind the 8-ball, especially in our own division,' " DeCoud said.

As the workout ended, players slowly filed out to their cars. Fullback Ovie Mughelli, exhausted, walked by reporters carrying his cleats, a towel and a water jug.

"I need my trainers, I need my locker, I need my coaches," Mughelli said. "I need to be back at the facility."

The last five to leave were Ryan, Finneran, Jenkins, cornerback Brent Grimes and third-string quarterback John Parker Wilson. The five ran sprints and other conditioning drills before calling it a day. They walked to the parking lot drenched in sweat.

It's a different feeling for the Falcons, working outside the workplace. But lockout or not, work doesn't stop.

"I think it's beneficial that we are in the same offense, same defense, and there is not a whole lot of new things that we have to go over," Ryan said. "It's kind of like we're tightening up some of the things we've worked on the past couple of years. We'll continue to do that and be ready to go whenever the season rolls around."

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NFL players, coaches violate lockout by staying in touch

The workout ended and a small group of players from one NFL team left a practice field, drove to a nearby house of a teammate and went inside. Once there, one of the players put his phone, near the kitchen, on speaker.

A few rings and then a familiar voice answered. It was one of the offensive assistant coaches. "How did practice go?" the assistant asked and a relaxed, 20-minute conversation between coach and players ensued.

It's a normally unremarkable scene except for one problem: it's not supposed to happen.

Over a two-week period, I spoke with a half-dozen players and handful of assistant coaches from both conferences. The picture that emerges is one where coaches and players, despite rules against it, stay in almost weekly contact with one another using a variety of technologies.

While lockout rules are supposed to prevent contact between players and coaches, when it comes to the team workouts, both sides are utilizing Skype, e-mail, text-messaging and good, old-fashioned phone calls to update coaches on the progress of group workouts, what players are doing to stay in shape and even personal issues.

Sometimes, they simply gossip or talk about the lockout. Think of the irony of talking about the lockout when they're not supposed to be talking during the lockout. It's like talking about Fight Club during a fight.

Players privately acknowledge that by engaging with coaches during the lockout they are in a way undermining their own trade association. The players' greatest leverage during the lockout is their particular and unmatched skill set, and if they secretly work with their teams the players are undercutting their own power.

They don't seem to care. What was stated repeatedly in interviews is that whichever team stays the most cohesive during this highly divisive fight with owners will have the biggest advantage once the lockout ends.

"Eventually we'll have football again," one high-profile offensive player said. "All that matters to me is who is ready and who isn't."

Players also say that while they see owners as the enemy, they don't view assistant coaches the same way.

Several players estimated 25 percent of the league's players are in regular contact with assistant coaches. However not one player said he had spoken to a head coach. It seems the head coaches, while aware of the contact, are keeping their distance and allowing subordinates to speak with players on their behalf, several sources stated. Plausible deniability, said one assistant. Any team caught communicating with players is subject to punishment from the league office. Superficially, the league is inactive but underneath there are a great many things happening. After I first reported teams were illicitly contacting undrafted free agents, for example. Pro Football Weekly later stated that six NFL agents had been contacted by clubs about those players, a violation of lockout rules. The Columbia (Mo.) Tribune reported that undrafted center Tim Barnes was contacted by Baltimore, Miami and Cincinnati. An NFL spokesman said such contact would amount to tampering.

As for the workouts themselves, some players believe in them, while others aren't so sure of their effectiveness. Green Bay linebacker A.J. Hawk told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel the Super Bowl defending champions are staying in shape without the group sessions.

"The most the defense can do when we get together is seven-on-seven," Hawk said. "I can understand quarterbacks throwing to receivers and stuff like that. I think it's more of a camaraderie thing. I've heard that different guys' workouts from different teams have just been a disaster. They're working out at bad high school fields and equipment and all that kind of stuff."

Hawk seems to be in the minority, however. Most players interviewed seemed to suggest the workouts are a tremendous help. New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees recently organized almost 40 Saints players for group sessions at Tulane.

"We would all be working out somewhere anyway, so why not do it together and why not do it in an organized fashion where it's very football-related?" Brees asked. "It's preparing us to have a championship season, and I feel like it's putting us way ahead of other teams around the league, just by the fact that we’re so organized."

The New York Jets, Giants, Denver, Cleveland, Miami, and Atlanta, among other teams, have held team workouts. Interestingly, players interviewed declined to say if their team was in contact with coaches but did speak about other teams.

Some coaches, players said, have joined players at their home to watch game film and discuss how to better structure the workouts. Coaches are also updated on injuries and how players are recovering from offseason surgeries, players said.

Players and coaches use the Internet phone system Skype. Players describe scenes where coaches first fax copies of certain plays and then players and coaches go over those plays using Skype. Later, players run those plays.

I've heard of conversations between coaches and players using the private direct message function on Twitter as well. Totally untraceable by the NFL.

My guess? This type of contact will continue and no one will ever get caught.

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The Greatest NFL Players and Coaches

In THE GREATEST, NFL Films brilliantly captures a century of Pro Football immorality into a single volume. From football's pioneers to its future Hall of Famers, this historical DVD recounts the games, the plays and stories of the NFL'S greatest legends. THE GREATEST takes you inside the skill and passion that separate the ordinary from the truly exceptional.

Price: $14.98

Click here to buy from Amazon