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       #Post#: 59--------------------------------------------------
       Sources: New Orleans Saints face significant discipline over
       videos of locker room celebration
   DIR By: The Referee
       Date: November 15, 2020, 10:13 am
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       Adam Schefter
       ESPN Senior Writer-
       The New Orleans Saints are facing significant discipline for not
       wearing masks during their postgame celebrations last Sunday
       night -- as seen in videos they posted to social media,
       including the team's own Twitter account -- after their victory
       over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, league sources told ESPN.
       Video of Saints players and head coach Sean Payton dancing and
       celebrating their 38-3 victory over Tampa Bay trended last
       Sunday night. Multiple players were clearly not wearing masks
       during the celebration in the locker room, which is a violation
       of the NFL's COVID-19 protocols -- and the league noticed,
       according to sources.
       The Saints are facing stiff fines and the loss of a draft pick,
       similar to the action the NFL took against the Raiders earlier
       this month, when Las Vegas was fined $500,000, head coach Jon
       Gruden was fined $150,000 and the franchise was stripped of a
       sixth-round pick for COVID-19 protocol violations.
       Discipline is expected to be handed down this week, according to
       a source, though the NFL and the Saints' legal team spent
       previous days discussing the issue.
       One issue the league is focused on, according to sources, is
       that like Gruden and the Raiders, Payton and the Saints are
       repeat offenders. Payton was fined $100,000 and the Saints
       $250,000 because Payton was not wearing a mask during New
       Orleans' Week 2 loss in Las Vegas. NFL discipline almost always
       is more severe for repeat offenders.
       The NFL sent out a memo to all teams on Nov. 3 with updated
       COVID-19 protocols that stressed: "All players and staff must
       wear masks or double-layered gaiters in the locker room on
       gameday -- prior to the game, during halftime, and post-game."
       Conversations between the Saints and the NFL will continue,
       according to sources, but the locker room celebration video was
       there for everyone to see. Payton, linebacker Demario Davis and
       quarterback Jameis Winston, who made his season debut in the
       victory over his former team, were among those seen dancing and
       celebrating in the video posted to Instagram by receiver
       Tre'Quan Smith.
       Davis and C.J. Gardner-Johnson also posted videos of the
       postgame dancing and celebrating on social media. The Saints no
       longer have any videos of the locker room celebration on their
       official Twitter account.
       The Saints, who have won five games in a row, handed Tom Brady
       the worst loss of his career while delivering one of the most
       convincing wins in the Payton-Drew Brees era. The victory was so
       thorough that Winston made his Saints debut as Brees' backup,
       completing his only pass for 12 yards while running out the
       clock over the final six minutes.
       Winston flashed his trademark "Eating a W" sign multiple times
       after the game, both during Brees' postgame interview and during
       the locker room celebration.
       ESPN's Mike Triplett contributed to this report.
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