Brian Spurlock-US PRESSWIRE

These days anytime Dennis Allen enters a room there’s an elephant following him around. That elephant’s name is Bountygate. Fair or unfair, Allen’s time as a defensive coach with the New Orleans Saints links him to the most scandalous event to hit football since Bill Belichick snuck a camcorder into opposing teams practices.

Though Allen had no direct connection to the pay for pain scandal his proximity to the issue makes for a continuous line of questioning that isn’t going away anytime soon thanks to the now infamous Gregg Williams audio recording.

Initially Allen kept a low profile once the news began to break on bountygate. Of course being that he was a newly minted head coach he did have other fish to fry. Problem was he knew at some point the time would come that he’d have to address that elephant.

Perhaps making the early effort to distance himself from the scandal, Allen’s first comments on bountygate were of praise for Roger Goodell and his hardline stance.  Allen also expressed his sadness at seeing men he’s worked with being pushed out of the game via suspension.

Yesterday Allen again took another step towards getting away from that elephant. He took a little time to talk about his first official week as an NFL coach and as you’d expect that elephant again came up in conversation. When asked if he felt bountygate in any way tainted the championship the Saints won Allen gave the following answer.

What I’m going to say about it is, No. 1, I’m proud of the success that we were able to have there, and No.2 , I’ve moved on, and I’m really a lot more interested in what’s happening with the Oakland Raiders and trying to prepare ourselves for the upcoming season. What’s happened in the past, I’ve really moved on.

Clearly Allen is none too enthused about having to discuss the topic. While he can’t do anything about the past there is plenty Allen can do going forward.

To begin Allen is already laying the groundwork to ensure nothing like this will ever happen during his watch in Oakland. He’s addressed those that were in attendance for this week’s voluntary workouts and he’ll do it again once the entire team is gathered later. Also, Allen has a reputation for being a strict disciplinarian. Now that he’s a head shot caller in the league Allen will be able to lay down his version of the law. If form follows function then not only will the Raiders remain scandal free but the miracle of all miracles could occur – the Raiders might become one of the least penalized teams in the league.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

It’s the audio recording the football world is burning on. Its Gregg Williams putting the final nail in the bountygate scandal and it’s the moment that will officially end the old school ways of pro football.

What Williams said would be considered mild a few decades ago. A bygone era when illegal hits were both taught and encouraged. An era that will never again exist in a lawsuit happy world.

I’m not in any way giving Williams a pass for instructing his men to “kill the head”. However he is a defensive coordinator and it is his job to motivate grown men to sacrifice their bodies. Now at days that message apparently must be delivered in a more PC way.

Protecting the players has become the mantra of the new NFL. That means no more unnecessarily aggressive play, whatever that means. That means less contact in a contact sport, however that’s possible. That means men like Williams are being weeded out of the game, for better or worse.

For decades the Oakland Raiders ran on the platform of terror and physicality. Al Davis didn’t invent the approach, he only refined it. Until the NFL becomes two hand touch the game will remain a physical contest. A game in which the aggressor is rewarded.

Football isn’t going to change in nature. The men who play it and coach it will have to though. That is what the Gregg Williams audio ultimately means. Now coaches must be hyper aware of their surroundings when instructing their players. Fiery speeches have suddenly become evidence.

The times are changing and those that do not change with them will be sent to pasture. Gregg Williams is likely done as an NFL coach, his career boiled down to a warning for all others. Old school football is dead and bountygate killed it, for better or worse.

Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Fair or unfair Dennis Allen will find it impossible to avoid questioning about his time as a defensive coach in New Orleans during which the now infamous “bounty scandal” was on-going. Allen might not have ever instructed any members of the Saints secondary he coached to kill for cash but he’s guilty by association. Fair or unfair so too are the Raiders who hired Allen to be their head coach.

As of now both Allen and the Raiders have yet to issues any statement on the matter. That will eventually change.

For the Raiders this scandal means little more than another unnecessary chore of putting out a fire they didn’t start. Reggie McKenzie can’t be worried about anything similar happening in Oakland since nothing like that occurred during Allen’s one year in Denver.

Allen’s role in the ordeal would appear to be minimal at best. His coordinator in New Orleans at the time, Gregg Williams, has admitted guilt and apologized. It was Williams’ show to run and if any of his assistants were involved it would have been at his behest.

Now this does not give Allen a free pass. He might not have had anything to do with the pay for pain scandal but he was in the room with the men who did. The NFL certainly wanted to talk to Allen so naturally the press will as well.

Among the many reasons why McKenzie ultimately chose Allen as his first head coach was due to the defensive prowess he’d bring to the Raiders. It goes without saying that playing defense is as much physical talent as it is a mindset. When Allen was with the Saints under Williams he helped oversee a defense that wasn’t a great one by any stretch but certainly played a physical brand of football.

No doubt McKenzie wants to see something similar from the Raiders.

Truth be told you don’t need to offer bounties in order to get defenders to do their job. That the Saints went that far only suggests that added incentive was needed. I’d never advocate for players attempting to intentionally injury another but it goes without saying that the Raiders could use some inspiration on defense.

Here is where the NFL walks a fine line. Football is inherently a brutal game. Trying to control violence for the purposes of entertainment is a problem unto itself.  The league wants an exciting and aggressive product yet only to a certain extent. Coaches expect the same from their players yet cannot encourage dirty tactics. Somehow those lines were blurred in New Orleans.

Allen might not have even known about what was going on during his time in the Big Easy but that is very doubtful. He might not have advocated for the program but he’s linked to it. Fair or unfair, anytime a Raider defender lays the lumber to an offensive player a few eyebrows will be raised and perhaps the line of questioning will begin all over.

For the Raiders this changes nothing. They’ve still got to hope Allen can bring a tough mindset to an otherwise weak defense. McKenzie can’t cosign on a bounty program in Oakland but he can only hope his defense yields similar results to what we saw from the Saints. They did win a Super Bowl after all. Fair or unfair that is the ultimate bottom line in a bottom line business.