A Sunday morning splash report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter put the New Orleans Saints in the NFL’s crosshairs for a breach in COVID-19 protocol following a postgame locker room celebration after defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Nov. 8, but Saints coach Sean Payton isn’t interested in commenting on it.
“No. No. No. No. Nope. You’re reporting off reports,” Payton chided when asked if penalties could be coming down on New Orleans during his Monday media conference call. Schefter’s initial report suggested the Saints could face similar punishment as the Las Vegas Raiders, who paid out substantial financial penalties and forfeited a 2021 sixth-round draft pick as repeat offenders.
Schefter added that the Saints legal team had been discussing the issue with the NFL office throughout the week after videos from the locker room antics went viral, but it doesn’t appear any league discipline is imminent. Or if it is, Payton is refusing to comment on it. For the curious, the Saints celebrated again after defeating the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, but this time they were masked up:
