Saints LB Jonathan Vilma's Lawsuit Takes Aim At Mike Cerullo As Whistleblower

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Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma's lawsuit takes aim at fired assistant coach Mike Cerullo, who, according to Vilma, produced documentation for the league, according to the Associated Press. Cerullo had a vendetta against the Saints after his firing following the 2009 season, and resented that the Super Bowl ring he received had been made with imitation (cubic zirconia) diamonds, the lawsuit contends. The lawsuit claims Cerullo created the document "well after the 2009 NFC Championship game and in an effort to gain revenge against the Saints." The suit further contends that a "close associate" of Cerullo has confirmed that Cerullo retracted his previous claims about the bounty program "in a communication directly with Goodell that occurred in April 2012." The lawsuit notes that Goodell has not shared notes from interviews with Cerullo, Goodell also did not produce Cerullo as a witness at the appeal hearing or acknowledge Cerullo's retraction.

Source: The Redzone