This past Monday, Scott Fujita and the other players suspended in the bounty scandal appealed their suspensions. Friday morning, Fujita was a guest on Sirius XM Radio, and Sports Illustrated posted a transcript relaying most of what the Browns' veteran outside linebacker had to say. His did not shy away from his encounter with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell:
If you could say anything to Roger Goodell right now, what would it be?
"I saw him in the [appeal] hearings and he offered to shake all of our hands. Some of the other players didn't, but I went ahead and shook his hand, and I just said to him, 'What the hell are you doing, Roger?' He had nothing to say. His face sure turned red, though."
Fujita also commented again on how he participated in a pay-for-performance system and that Greg Williams' comments were over the top, but not indicative of him participating in a pay-to-injure program:
But you are saying that it was just language and bravado and in no way a kind of "pay to hurt" system.
"Absolutely. I was there for one year in 2009, and, without question, there was nobody paying or receiving any money for causing injury. I've talked to enough guys who I'm close with who were there for the seasons after I left, and it's the same thing.
"People said I was stupid for confessing to paying for big plays. I didn't think of that as a big deal. Is it against the rules? Technically, yeah, it's against the rules, but that's the way it was done when I was a young player and I'm not ashamed of that. If that's what I'm going down for, let's call it for what it is. The problem is that the league has billed this thing as being this super-organized pay-to-injure scheme, which it never was.
"Now, it turns out when the evidence is getting released that there is actually very little to nothing on anything pay-to-injure related, especially as it pertains to me. So, again, if it's pay-for-performance, let's call it what it is, and if I have to take my medicine for that, I'll do that, and we'll move on, but that's not what the league has billed this as."
Check out the rest of the article to see how he explains this as affecting his personal life, why more players have not been suspended, and his impression of the evidence of the NFL reportedly has on him.