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On Tuesday, Sean Payton decided to step down as the New Orleans Saints head coach. He'd been at the helm for 16 years. During his tenure, there was one incident that tarnished, if only for a brief time, his otherwise pristine record. It was known as the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal or simply "Bountygate."
While most will remember Sean Payton for his success with the Saints, his involvement with Bountygate won't be forgotten anytime soon either.
According to Wikipedia, members of the New Orleans Saints "were accused of paying out bonuses or bounties for injuring opposing team players." Two of those players were reportedly Kurt Warner and Brett Favre. Bountygate was alleged to have taken place from 2009 to 2011. The Saints won the Super Bowl XLIV in 2009.
After a lengthy investigation, the NFL found that Sean Payton not only knew about this but tried to hide the information from the NFL. The NFL suspended Sean Payton for the entire 2012 season for his participation in Bountygate.
The whole organization was fined $500,000, and they lost several draft picks. The whole incident only briefly tarnished the reputations of the Saints organization and Payton, who tried to appeal his suspension.
Despite the controversy, Payton is still seen as one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time for what he has done with the New Orleans Saints. He is beloved by the city of New Orleans and will probably be a folk hero in that area for the rest of his life.
This legendary status is probably why a team like the Dallas Cowboys would love to hire him sooner rather than later.
Why is Sean Payton a wanted man?
Sean Payton's reputation didn't suffer too much after Bountygate. All was forgiven and he was back in the league the next year.
Payton turned a Saints team, which was one of the worst in the league, into one of the best teams and organizations in the NFL.
He led them to their first and only Super Bowl win in 2009 and took the Saints to 9 playoff appearances, more than any coach in Saints history.
Rumors are circulating that Payton's retirement may be short-lived and that he may return to the game after sitting out for one year.
There is already speculation that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones wants Payton to be his next head coach, if not this year, then next year, which means Mike McCarthy may be on the clock, if the Cowboys don't make it to the NFC Championship game next year.
It may take Jerry Jones stepping away from the general manager's position for this to take place, but who's to say he won't do that in order for his team to win a Super Bowl?
Given what he did for the Saints, Sean Payton may be worth the wait for the Cowboys.
Also Checkout: Kurt Warner super bowl wins
