A speech recorded by a documentary filmmaker captures former New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams imploring his players to injure specific San Francisco 49ers the night before January's NFC divisional-round playoff game.
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In the fiery, profanity-laced speech, a portion of which filmmaker Sean Pamphilon recorded, Williams urges Saints players to inflict harm on several 49ers, including quarterback Alex Smith, running back Frank Gore, and wide receivers Michael Crabtree and Kyle Williams.
"At one point, Williams says, 'We hit (expletive) Smith right there' -- then he points under his chin (and continues) -- 'remember me,' " Pamphilon told Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports. "Then he rubs his thumb against his index and middle fingers -- the cash sign -- and says, 'I got the first one. I got the first one. Go get it. Go lay that (expletive) out.' "
It's unknown if the NFL had this audio during its investigation of the Saints' "bounty" program. The league declined comment to NFL.com's Steve Wyche on whether the audio recording in the Yahoo! Sports story or any other information in the article was evidence it previously had or if it was new.
Pamphilon recorded the audio while working on a film about former Saints special-teams player Steve Gleason, who suffers from Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and hasn't played in the NFL since 2006.
Pamphilon released a statement to The Times-Picayune on Thursday, in which he explained how the serious nature of the Saints' "bounty" scandal prompted him to release the audio.
"If this story hadn't broken and been made public, I would not have shared this," wrote Pamphilon, who didn't explain why he chose to release the audio just hours before the Saints' appeals of their "bounty"-related punishments. "I would not have compromised my personal relationships and risked damaging Steve Gleason's relationship with the Saints. I would have crafted these words and sentiments for another forum, perhaps years down the road."
A source told ProFootballTalk.com that Gleason planned to release a statement saying Pamphilon wasn't authorized to publicize what he recorded.
Pamphilon declined NFL.com and NFL Network's request for an interview.
Pamphilon told Yahoo! Sports he believes "there's no doubt at all" that Williams placed a bounty on Smith. Pamphilon emphasized that Saints coach Sean Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis, both of whom have received suspensions from the NFL, weren't in the room during Williams' speech.
Williams, now the St. Louis Rams' defensive coordinator, was suspended indefinitely by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for his role in the "bounty" program. He did not appeal the punishment.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.