I am...completely okay with this punishment. I think the "bounty pool" was a pretty egregious violation, and the punishment for that oughtta be harsh. I like that the punishment affects the management and front office, not just the players (I note that the further up the chain you go, the lighter your punishment is. That's weird, but given what we know about the situation, I do think it's fair to assume that culpability decreased further up the chain, too). I feel bad for Saints' fans for this upcoming season, but I don't know how you could have possibly structured a punishment without screwing them over, anyway. And hell, maybe this will inspire some more of us fans to think long and hard about how much violence we're willing to stand in the NFL, given that it now could have long-term consequences for our teams.
On the other hand, a lot of people I listen to are pretty apoplectic about this. I'm not sure I can follow them on this one. I understand that this punishment will not fix the problem of violence in football. I understand that it does nothing for players with concussions or long-term head injuries. But I don't know if anyone's saying it WILL, y'know? I mean, if this is the last thing that Goodell and the NFL do about violence, then yeah, it's not nearly enough. They can't clap their hands and say the problem is solved, like I said before. But I want to see if they do that before I condemn them for it.
I mean, the follow up is always important. But I don't see why this wasn't a good start.
