Lions Fan Made Bomb Threat During Playoff Game

The Detroit Lions needed some help in their playoff loss to the New Orleans Saints. Defensive help that is and not help from any crazy fans, like the one who thought it was a smart idea to phone in a bomb threat to the Superdome during the game.


The fan, 34-year-old Shawn Payton of Jackson, Michigan, called the Superdome during the game and asked the receptionist to pass along a threat to his namesake, Saints coach Sean Payton.


“I will blow up your building,” Shawn Payton said in his first call, according to an FBI affidavit filed in federal court Wednesday and obtained by the New Orleans Times-Picayune.


He felt that wasn't enough so he called in a second time to make sure the proper authorities got his message.

“Hi, I want you to relay a message to the sideline. If your stupid Southern team keeps winning, there will be reper…severe consequences. OK?” Shawn Payton said in the second call, which law enforcement personnel recorded after being alerted to the first call. 


Well Mr. Payton, you should realize that in the big picture, football is a game and a game only. It's played by kids and adults are lucky to get paid for it. So there is no reason for you to go off the deep end and make threats.

After the ridiculous stunt he pulled Payton is afraid of the future that awaits him.

“I’m scared,” he said. “I hope they realize that I didn’t mean it and that I’m taking steps to get counseling. . . . I don’t drink, and I don’t do drugs. From time to time, I do get frustrated and go off without meaning it. . . . I let some words fly out of my mouth, and I sincerely apologize. I will never ever, ever, ever do anything like that again.”


Sounds like some one is scared of going to the pokey. This is what happens keeping it real goes wrong.  

Evans Thinks Suh Is A Dirty Player

And the claims that Ndamukong Suh is a ‘dirty’ player continue to emerge as we are now on the eve of the Lions first playoff game since the 1999 season.

The latest claim has come from New Orleans Saints; Pro Bowl guard Jahri Evans who says Suh is a dirty player after the whistle.

“I think some things he does is dirty, after the whistle,” Evans told The Times-Picayune. “He needs to put a cap on that, but he’s a phenomenal player.”

Now this seems pretty consistent with a lot of the other claims that have surfaced during the season. It’s also hard for Lions fans to refute any claim that Suh is a dirty player based off what happened Thanksgiving weekend when Suh stomped on Packers guard Evan Dietrich-Smith.

The trouble though with Evans’ comments is he has never been matched with Suh… ever. So it may be safe to assume that Evans is jumping on a bandwagon rather than finding out for himself. Suh missed the matchup with the Saints earlier this season because of a two game suspension for the aforementioned stomp against the Packers.

This adds an interesting subplot to this game as there were stories coming out of New Orleans that if Suh starts taking any cheap shots at quarterback Drew Brees that they won't back down from him. It looks like Suh will have a target on his back Saturday night.  

Saints Put Ingram On Injured Reserve

New Orleans Saints rookie running back Mark Ingram had a so-so rookie season. Not spectacular, but not all that bad either. Considering the interchangable parts the Saints have on offense I'd say he did pretty good.

Too bad for Ingram, since he won't be seeing any action in his first go round in the NFL playoffs, as he's been put on injured reserve by the team.

Ingram missed the last four regular season games because of a sprained toe and the injury got worse during practice last week. Ingram's absence shouldn't be missed all that much since Chris Ivory is just coming back.

Ingram carried 122 times for 474 yards and five touchdowns this season. His longest run was a 35-yard touchdown against the New York Giants on Nov. 28.


     

Arnoux Reclaims Stolen Ring

During Memorial Day weekend New Orleans Saints linebacker Stanley Arnoux lost his Super Bowl ring in Miami in what had to be one of the dumbest things ever done, since he he left it in the console of his car. It wasn't really lost, it was stolen. The story now has a happy ending. 

The thief has been caught and Arnoux has his ring back. A South Florida hotel worker is a suspect in the case.


On Memorial Day, a customer reportedly walked into Kendale Jewelry, a pawn shop on Southwest 72nd Street and 152nd Avenue in Southwest Miami-Dade, with the championship ring. "It was a very distinctive ring. I was actually very surprised that he was selling the ring instead of pawning it," said Alberto Iturrey of Kendale Jewelry.


The ring was from the 2008 NFL season, when the New Orleans Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts and won the Super Bowl championship title. Arnoux's ring is valued at over $30,000. However, Iturrey only offered $1,200 to the customer who brought the ring to the pawn shop, since the ring's gold was worth that amount. Iturrey said, "A couple days later, he came back to the store and he asked what we were going to do with the ring. I found that odd. I found that very odd."


Iturrey called police and investigators determined Gil Ulloa, a valet manger at the Fontainebleau Hotel on Miami Beach, stole the Super Bowl ring. During Memorial Day weekend, Arnoux attended a party at the Fontainebleau. Miami-Dade Police Detective Javier Baez said, "He ransacked the vehicle, opened up the glove box, stole $200 as well as the Super Bowl ring."

Iturrey said he had to contact Arnoux via Twitter to give him his ring back.


"His eyes watered when I gave him back the ring," said Iturrey. "He told me, his exact words were, "'Man, I feel like I am receiving it again for the first time.'"

Ulloa has been charged with grand theft and dealing in stolen property. He has been released on $20,000 bond.

It's kind of heartwarming that Arnoux was able to get his ring back. Super Bowl rings are hard to come by and I bet he'll keep his in a safe deposit box for now on. A dumb mistake compounded by a dumb crime makes a happy ending. In a strange way two wrongs do make a right. 

Saints Player Has Super Bowl Ring Stolen

Super Bowl rings are hard to come by. Some of the greatest players in NFL history have played for years only to come up short in the championship category. Don't believe me ask Dan Marino, Dan Fouts, or Earl Campbell how they really feel about not having won the big one. Or ask former Ram Chidi Ahanotu how he feels about having to pay part of his divorce settlement with his. So they are a pretty big deal.

It must've not been a big deal to New Orleans Saints linebacker Stanley Arnoux. Arnoux lost his Super Bowl ring in Miami during Memorial Day weekend. How he lost it is what has people guessing.

Arnoux attended and valet parked both his car and the $30,000 Tiffany ring at what reportedly was a wild hip-hop party at the Fontainebleau Hotel, an iconic beachfront property on South Beach. But the hotel's fame -- Drake and Lil Wayne have also been guests recently -- apparently confers no immunity from bandits, because Arnoux told police the ring was no longer with the car when he departed around 7 a.m. on June 1.

Arnoux left the ring in the center console of the car. What the hell was he thinking? You don't leave a Super Bowl ring in the center console of your car under no circumstance. You leave it at home or in a safe deposit box. Not carrying it around in for show, especially at a rap gathering. Nothing against rap, it's my favorite music, but I wouldn't be worrying about 'ballin out' with my Super Bowl ring.

Hopefully he finds it and all ends well. If not he better hope he can earn another. Good luck on finding the ring Stanley and consider this a lesson learned.     




   

Drew Brees Defends Sean Payton's Move To Dallas

When New Orleans Saints Sean Payton decided to uproot his family and move to Dallas, all kinds of bells and whistles went off in New Orleans. The move was signed off by Saints owner Tom Benson and General Manager Mickey Loomis.

The rumors that came out of it were that the Dallas Cowboys were looking at Payton to fill their general manager post. Another was that Payton was having family troubles. Saints quarterback Drew Brees says it's none of that and everyone is making a big deal out of nothing. Where there's smoke there's fire but I don't think Payton is going anywhere right now either. 

"It's a non-issue,'' Brees said. "I think everyone wants to immediately jump to conclusions and all of them are so untrue. The first of which is his family and him are having problems. No, that's not the case at all. The other one is he's taking a job with the Dallas Cowboys. No, not true either. People want to immediately jump to conclusions as to why he's bought a home in Dallas but most players and coaches in the league have a home base, a place where they're either from or where they spent a lot of time before so they have a solid foundation. There's not a guy who's more committed to his team and the city of New Orleans than Sean Payton. I think he's proven that.''



If the Saints struggle early you know the Dallas move will be the focal point behind it. Everyone will say that Payton has an eye on a different job, so the Saints players will feel sold out or why do they want to play for someone who doesn't want to be here. This will be something to keep an eye provided there is an NFL season.

The Seahawks Showed The Experts

This wasn't supposed to happen. There was no way the Seattle Seahawks were supposed to be able to come within two scores of the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints. You can put that all to rest. The Seahawks pulled the shocker of the playoffs (so far) beating the Saints 41-36.

Everyone complained and lampooned the Seahawks for winning the NFC West with a losing record. I said in a previous post, that you can hate them all you want but they won their division fair and square. They did what they had to do to get a home playoff game. They took care of business and it paid off for them. Now it's off to the divisional round to play Green Bay or Chicago. They could possibly get another home game out of this.

The NFL playoff system might not be the perfect setup, but it gives evryone a fair chance within the system. I don't necessarily agree with a team with a losing record getting a home game, but it is what it is. Like I said, they won the division which gets you a home game. That's all you have to do. Take care of business in the division and get rewarded for it. Unless you're the Raiders.      

Where Do The Saints Find These Guys?

I know every year in the NFL Draft there are guys that slip through the cracks, had an inoppurtune injury, transfer to a smaller school, or just maybe didn't fit the coaches' scheme. Some make it, some don't. Which brings me to this. How do the New Orleans Saints find these guys and why do they excel?

First it was Marques Colston. Then Lance Moore. Jermon Bushrod. Now here comes Tiffin University's finest Chris Ivory. I guess he started his college career at Washington State, then transferred to Tiffin. You would think he would become an afterthought to NFL scouts. Now I'm not trying to put him or any other small school stars down. It's just that my Detroit Lions can never find these kind of guys. I don't know what it is, but they wind up in New Orleans and some kind of magic happens. Maybe it's the voodoo down there.

I wish him a long career and hope he's not a flash in the pan. It just shows what good scouting and hard work will do.

Saints were super,but you can't pin the loss on Manning

The New Orleans Saints are the Super Bowl Champions.It was hard fought and well deserved.Down early 10-0 the Saints never wavered from their gameplan.Play keepaway from Peyton Manning.It was clear which team was the agressor and which team played on their heels the entire night.Even though Drew Brees threw the ball around,they were short, precise passes that chewed up much of the clock.The defense stepped up big time and showed that they are capable of shutting down a top notch offfense.The Colts had their chances to make this outcome different.I won't blame coaching,but there was no way that Matt Stover should've been attempting a 51 yard field goal.They should have tried to shorten the distance instead of going for it all with the incomplete pass to Austin Collie.The Colts didn't get her playing it safe,but sometimes you have to.If anything maybe they should've tried to pin the Saints deep in their own end.Another thing I noticed was that it seemed like Reggie Wayne was shortarming passes all game.That eventually came back to haunt them,when he cut his route short on Tracy Porter's game clinching pick 6.I wasn't in the huddle so I don't know what play was called,but it looked like he sat on his break,while Porter jumped the route.I know,Manning was the one who threw the ball.Being a watcher of bad football for years(I'm a Lions fan),I know when receivers run bad routes.That's why I say you can't blame Manning for the loss.He didn't have his greatest game,and I know the quarterback is supposed to be your leader,but he can't go out and defend passes and tackle the opposing running back either.Overall,it was a good game and the Saints defense showed me alot.With a lot of key players in their last year of their contract,they might not have this oppurtunity again.The players and fans should enjoy this,as they've been through hard times and lean years in the Big Easy.The Colts had a great season and have nothing to be ashamed of.They will be back and hopefully Manning can shake the choker label and get another ring.