NFL commissioner Roger Goodell upheld the suspensions of Jonathan Vilma and Will Smith on Tuesday for their role in the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal and reduced penalties for Scott Fujita and Anthony Hargrove.
Though an appeal panel created by the NFL's labour agreement vacated the original suspensions on technical grounds, Goodell ruled he was sticking to his decision to suspend Vilma for the season and Smith for four games.
Hargrove, a free-agent defensive lineman, will face a two-game suspension once he signs with a team. He originally was hit with eight games, but that was reduced to seven with five games already served. Fujita, who plays for Cleveland, will now miss only one game instead of three.
Despite Goodell's new rulings, the seven-month old bounty saga is not over. Vilma offered a response on Twitter, that read, in part, "this is not news to me pride won't let him admit he's wrong." Smith issued a statement saying he will continue to explore his appeal options.
The players were implicated in what the NFL said was a bounty pool run by former Saints defensive co-ordinator Gregg Williams and paid improper cash bonuses for hits that injured opponents. The players have acknowledged a pool but denied they intended to injure anyone.
The players can delay their suspensions by appealing again through their labour contract, which they have three days to do. They could also ask a federal judge in New Orleans to revisit their earlier request for an injunction blocking the suspensions.
Still, Goodell upheld parts, or all of the players' suspensions.
"The quality, specificity and scope of the evidence supporting the findings of conduct detrimental [to the game] are far greater and more extensive than ordinarily available in such cases," Goodell said in a memorandum to the 32 clubs.
