NEW ORLEANS — On the same day the NFL heard the Saints’ appeals in their hits-for-cash scandal, a recording of Gregg Williams emerged that purports to capture the disgraced defensive coordinator telling players to “put a lick” on 49ers receiver
NEW ORLEANS — On the same day the NFL heard the Saints’ appeals in their hits-for-cash scandal, a recording of Gregg Williams emerged that purports to capture the disgraced defensive coordinator telling players to “put a lick” on 49ers receiver Kyle Williams to see if he had lingering effects from a concussion.
Filmmaker Sean Pamphilon, who had access to Saints meetings for a documentary on football, posted the audio on his web site.
Pamphilon initially shared the content with Yahoo Sports, telling the website that while he was not bothered by much of Williams’ profanity-laced speech, he was troubled by comments about the previously concussed player.
“I thought, ‘Did he just say that?’” Pamphilon said in an article posted Thursday. “That was the red flag for me.”
Kyle Williams’ father, White Sox general manager Kenny Williams, said his son “has definite feelings on the subject but has chosen to remain committed to providing all his answers to any questions on the field next season.” But Kenny Williams had his own thoughts on the recording.
“Personally, suspension or not, it’s probably best I’m never in a room with Gregg Williams and wonder if such an order crosses the line of the aggressive, competitive spirit we all know and love about the sport; and leans closer to a criminal act and therefore a litigious matter,” Kenny Williams said in an emailed statement.
Gregg Williams, who is suspended indefinitely for his admitted role overseeing a bounty system that offered Saints defenders payment for painful hits, did not respond to a phone message and email left with his foundation in Missouri on Thursday.
Williams left New Orleans after last season — his third with the Saints — and was hired as defensive coordinator by the St. Louis Rams.
Pamphilon made the recording of Williams’ speech during a meeting before the Saints lost to San Francisco in a divisional playoff last January, the final game Williams coached.
When the New York Giants defeated the 49ers a week later in the NFC title game, several Giants players made similar comments about wanting to get hits on Kyle Williams, who fumbled twice in the game, because they knew he had previous concussions.
In Pamphilon’s recording, Williams also tells his players to set their sights on running back Frank Gore, quarterback Alex Smith and receiver Michael Crabtree.
