The Sports Monitor

Thud. That was the hammer coming down on the New Orleans Saints for their bounty program. Coach Sean Payton was suspended for a year, former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was suspended indefinitely, general manager Mickey Loomis was suspended for eight games, and the team will lose a second-round pick in 2012 and 2013. That's what happens when commissioner Roger Goodell stresses player safety and Bountygate breaks out. The Saints got what they deserved. Goodell needed to send a message. I'm sure the rest of the league heard. I just can't help but think this won't put an end to it. The players will be much more secretive in the future.

Steelers linebacker James Harrison knows how to make an impact. He does it on Sundays in the fall, usually with such reckless abandon that he inflicts punishment on his target. He did it again, with NFL commish Roger Goodell caught in the crosshairs. Harrison ripped Goodell in Men's Journal magazine, and along the way took a shot at teammates Ben Roethlisberger and Rashard Mendenhall. You can check out a story here , if you haven't heard the ruckus. And as swiftly as his words hit the Internet, the criticism followed. I find it ironic that the media longs for an athlete who speaks his mind yet when those comments don't agree with his or her view, the athlete is criticized. And don't read that as a defense of Harrison. It's not. There's plenty to dislike about Harrison's comments, which calling them over the top would be an understatement. However, who didn't think Roethlisberger's play in the Super Bowl hurt the Steelers? Anyone else ...