Bountygate: bigger than Williams.

Only a few days ago, a report came out concerning former Washington Redskins and New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and his "bounty systems" in which players were rewarded with cash for taking opposing players out of games by injuring them. He supposedly ran such a system during his tenure with both organizations, and a massive punishment for Williams is expected from the league commissioner, Roger Goodell.

Also in jeopardy are the New Orleans Saints and their leadership which failed to expose and put a stop to these bounties. Head coach Sean Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis could face serious consequences for allowing the bounties to continue, especially after owner Tom Benson reportedly told them to put a stop to the practice.

Bounties for injuries are nothing new in the NFL. Most famously, in 1989, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Buddy Ryan put a bounty on Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman and kicker Luis Zendejas. As MJD of Yahoo! Sports' Shutdown Corner writes, not much was made of it. It's been more or less accepted in locker rooms and not talked about publicly.

In fact, many players participate in and enjoy the bounty system. As Les Carpenter, also of Yahoo! Sports, writes, Williams's intensity endeared him to his players, and his bounties were a part of that. Defensive players largely see the issue differently from offensive players, even when on the same team when a bounty hit occurs.

For a league concerned with player safety and its image, this is a huge problem. Bounties, along with the already-known concussion issues, put a huge black mark on the league's integrity. It's up to commissioner Goodell to respond. He's said he wants to lessen injuries and clear the league of unethical practices (drug testing and the Spygate scandal), and here he has a big mess to clean up. He needs to get rid of this practice, and quickly, but it won't be easy. Bounties are ingrained into defensive locker room culture. The NFL must find a way to make bounties not worth it. Not worth it for the players to participate in, not worth it for coaches to perpetuate, and not worth it for franchises to ignore. When the probability and cost of getting caught outweigh the rewards (to both wallet and ego), bounties will disappear.

For the sake of professional football, let's hope that happens.