BAD NEWS: Following Sean Payton’s involvement in an accident that resulted in…
Pay attention to Sean Payton. With caution. He is enraged. Depressing. Angry. fervent.
In a 33-minute phone interview with USA TODAY Sports on Monday, the first since Will Smith’s passing, Payton said, “If this opinion in Louisiana is incredibly unpopular, then so be it.”
The New Orleans Saints coach is appealing for stronger gun regulation in the wake of the horrific murder on Saturday night that left former defensive end Smith dead and Smith’s wife Racquel injured—amid a dispute over a car accident.
He’s not just talking about making the laws stricter. Payton would prefer that there be no guns in our nation.
“They’re going to ask themselves, ‘What was that lunacy about?’ two centuries from now.” stated Payton. People are more likely to draw them (in other contexts) when they believe that we need them to ward off invaders. That’s some ridiculous things that we’re holding on to.
Nobody in his right mind can blame Payton for expressing his honest, human feeling as he is still coming to terms with the loss of a former team captain who was only a few weeks away from being an intern for the Saints coaching staff. It doesn’t really matter if Payton is defying NFL coach talk by speaking out strongly on a contentious political issue—he just wants to get this off his chest.
Payton clarified, “I’m not an extreme lefty.” “On some subjects, I find that I lean right.” But I just can’t get my head around this problem.
Payton, who was raised in a Chicago suburb, claimed that his father—an insurance claims adjuster who seen many tragedies in his line of work—had an impact on his mindset. Before beginning his coaching career in the late 1980s, he also played for six months in a British football league.
“Gun hate,” he declared.
Payton stated that despite his efforts to overcome his anti-gun prejudice, he still comes to the same conclusion.
He remarked, “I’ve seen some say that everybody needs a gun.” That is insane. I am aware that a lot of children are raised in hunting environments. I understand that. However, in some countries, like England, even law enforcement officers lack firearms.
Payton participated in a charity auction at the House of Blues, the center of action at the annual French Quarter Fest, for a portion of Saturday night. He found out about Smith’s passing just after midnight when he got back home; the incident happened roughly eight blocks from Payton’s Garden District residence.
Payton drove to the location at around 5:45 on Sunday morning because he couldn’t sleep.
He declared, “I wanted to witness it.”
Payton commiserated with some of Smith’s family members while spending several hours in the hospital where Racquel had surgery before logging on to the Internet Sunday night to try to learn as much as he could about the weapon that was used. He went into graphic detail about what he found.
The gun had a big caliber. A.45, “said Payton. It was created in the midst of World War I. And they are just stopped by this stuff. After being struck, a person will die in four or five seconds. You exhaust yourself. Smith suffered three more gunshots to his back after the initial one that hit his torso.
After pausing, Payton resumed his theme.
