2012 NFL Free Agents: Possible Suspensions Altering Saints Offseason Plans?

The NFL has already hit the New Orleans Saints hard for the bounty program they ran, but the team may also be making transactions based on possible future suspensions. 

When commissioner Roger Goodell suspended Saints coach Sean Payton for a year, it sent the message that the type of bounty system New Orleans employed would not be tolerated. For the team, it meant that certain loose ends had to be tied up while the most successful coach in franchise history was absent.

Most notably, the Saints can't afford to have quarterback Drew Brees hold out and miss offseason workouts or training camp, because he is the only person who knows the team's offense as well as Payton. If Brees isn't on hand for the team's workouts and practices, things could get messy offensively. Without Payton and Brees running the show, things would be completely in flux and out of whack. 

While the Saints and Brees are expected to get a contract extension done, the 33-year-old quarterback wasn't exactly happy with getting the franchise tag earlier this month and does not plan on signing the tender.

In Payton's absence, the Saints still need someone to step in as head coach. ESPN's Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter are both reporting that Payton has approached Bill Parcells about coaching New Orleans this season. 

In addition to missing their coach and their quarterback, the Saints are also likely to be without middle linebacker Jonathan Vilma for at least some of the 2012 season. Vilma was the only player identified in the NFL's sanctions against New Orleans, but any penalties he will face have not been announced. 

The Saints have claimed they have no intention of cutting Vilma, but they went out and inked middle linebacker Curtis Lofton to a five-year deal this weekend. While Lofton or Vilma could probably play on the outside of the team's 4-3 scheme, it is clear New Orleans signed the 25-year-old Oklahoma product to fill in if Vilma is out.

While they might have gone after someone like Lofton anyway, Vilma's likely impending suspension made the need for another linebacker even more pressing.

In addition to that, the NFL also took away second-round draft picks in each of the next two drafts, and thanks to a trade last year, the Saints won't pick until the third round this year. Any holes they could have filled early in the draft now will have to be plugged in free agency.

Clearly, New Orleans will be feeling the effects of "Bountygate" for quite some time and will likely change the way the front office operates in the near future.