Athletics and Ethics

Josh Sigler

PE858 Ethics in HPER and Sport

Assignment 2- Athletics and Ethics- Consideration and Application

September 14, 2014

The word “bounty” in the dictionary (Dictionary.com) is described as being a premium reward given by a person to someone else that has hurt or inflicted pain on another individual. This barbaric word was often used or heard in old movies or seen in the Wild West on posters hanging in a saloon or post office. In 2012, the word “bounty” captured the 21st century and became a nightmare for the National Football League. In 2009, the New Orleans Saints were found using a system that rewarded money to its players in an effort to target players from opposing teams. The players were given their bonus money by inflicting hard hits or injuring targeted players. The program itself ran from 2009-2012, involving between 22-27 players, and became known as “Bounty Gate”. The scandal resulted in four players, the head coach, two assistant coaches, and the general manager all being suspended for different amounts of time. In this paper, I am going to examine what “Bounty Gate” meant to the National Football Leagues perception in the business world, the society of athletics at all levels, and most importantly the fans.

The National Football League is the biggest juggernaut in professional sports. Each year every team fills their stadiums, sells millions of dollars worth of merchandise and signs with different endorsement companies. They also do a great deal of work with different charitable organizations, youth sports teams, and have a part in the encouragement of making kids move. The influence that the league has on society is unprecedented. So, when the story broke about the New Orleans Saints and “Bounty Gate”, society was stunned. People were not stunned about their favorite players being paid to hurt the opposing team, but to find out the NFL knew about it long ago, sat back and then decided to blow the whistle on it. Why all of a...