NEW ORLEANS -- The NFL Players Association filed papers in federal court pointing out that the NFL permitted a 1996 incentive program for big hits funded by then-Green Bay defensive lineman Reggie White. In papers filed Thursday in U.S. District Court, the union questioned why NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell should now be able to suspend former Saints linebacker Scott Fujita for offering then-New Orleans teammates rewards for big plays during the 2009 season. The filing cited media reports about Whites "smash-for-cash" program that paid $500 for big plays, including big hits. The reports, now nearly 16 years old, include players from other teams discussing similar pools climbing into the thousands of dollars. In one report by ESPN, Troy Vincent, then a defensive back with Philadelphia, discusses a similar player-funded incentive program run by Eagles players. Vincent now works for the NFL as a vice-president overseeing player engagement. In the reports, an NFL spokesman is quoted as saying the incentive programs are permitted as long as players use their own money and the amounts players pledge are not exorbitant. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Thursday night that the league would defer comment to its own forthcoming arguments in court. The NFLPA seized upon the NFLs 1996 stance particularly as it related to Fujita, who Goodell suspended this for one game this season even though he said he could not verify that Fujita participated in the bounty program the league says the Saints ran for three seasons from 2009-11. Goodell said Fujita, now with Cleveland, was still guilty of violating NFL rules by offering his own incentives for big plays and also, as a team leader, by failing to try to stop to the cash-for-hits program overseen by then-Saints defensive co-ordinator Gregg Williams. The union said that while the NFLs player safety goals may have evolved since 1996, it is unfair to punish players for behaviour it previously permitted without formally spelling out that such behaviour is no longer allowed. "The fact that the NFL has a different agenda today than it did in 1996 cannot change the unequivocal language of the NFL Constitution & Bylaws, which has never prohibited this type of behaviour," the union wrote in its legal briefs. "The Commissioners attempt to nonetheless suspend and scapegoat Mr. Fujita for conduct - incentivizing undisputed, legitimate plays - never before punished or prohibited by the NFL not only violates the essence of the (collective bargaining) agreement but further demonstrates the Commissioners evident partiality." Fujita is one of four players suspended by Goodell in the NFLs bounty probe of the Saints. Saints linebacker Jon Vilma was suspended for the season, Saints defensive end Will Smith for four games and free agent defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove for seven games. None of the suspensions are currently in effect because they all have been appealed within the framework of the NFLs labour agreement, and Goodell has set hearings for those appeals this Tuesday in New York. However, all four players also have asked U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan to throw out Goodells disciplinary rulings on the grounds that he has demonstrated a bias against the players in his handling the bounty investigation, thereby violating the players industrial due process rights. The players also have questioned the credibility of the leagues evidence in the case or the witnesses upon which the leagues investigation relied. The NFL has said the union agreed that the commissioner would be able to serve as the lone arbitrator for matters deemed detrimental to football and that the evidence in the case is strong enough to support Goodells rulings. Still, the players have argued that Goodell should be barred from handling discipline in the bounty probe and that a neutral arbitrator should be appointed, an argument repeated by the union in its latest filing. "It is only a neutral of unquestioned integrity who can restore public confidence in this process and mitigate the damage which the NFLs handling of bounty-gate has inflicted upon the game," the NFLPA said. Meanwhile, former Minnesota Vikings defensive lineman Jimmy Kennedy submitted a sworn declaration stating he "knew nothing of any alleged bounty program" that the Saints had in place on quarterback Brett Favre when they faced the Vikings in the 2009-10 NFC title game. Kennedys declaration states that he had only told teammates that the Saints were hitting Minnesota players "like theres money on the table," which was his way of urging teammates to match New Orleans intensity. Kennedy said NFL investigator Joe Hummel called him to ask about a Saints bounty program, and he told Hummel he did not know anything about it. "Contrary to the Leagues claims, I did not act as a whistleblower," Kennedy stated. An NFL memo from the bounty probe has indicated that Kennedy told then-Vikings coach Brad Childress about a Saints bounty on Favre after discussing it with Hargrove, his former teammate in St. Louis. cheap jerseys . Right-hander Todd Redmond took the loss. Jose Bautista hit his second home run of the spring. Here are a handful of tidbits from around camp: Hutchison impressive The Blue Jays are being cautious when talking about their young arms but internally, excitement is building over the way Drew Hutchison is looking and performing this spring. wholesale jerseys . The Raptors will head to the bayou after suffering an 88-85 loss in Houston last night. DeMar DeRozan scored 17 points and James Johnson posted 16 and eight boards for Toronto, which has dropped eight of 10 games. http://www.overalljersey.com/. In a 43-game stint, he batted .293 with nine homers and 25 runs batted in with a .953 OPS. He played spectacular defence and seemed to have a skill for pumping up his teammates and electrifying the crowd. wholesale nfl jerseys . Kim, who started the final round with a four-shot lead, argued that he never grounded his club on the 13th hole. The OneAsia Tour said he discussed the violation with tournament officials for two hours. cheap nfl jerseys . Several members of the jury pool under selection in Washington federal court said they would weigh evidence from both sides before deciding on a verdict. The judge and Clemens lawyer had to repeatedly explain the legal principle of innocent until proven guilty and that prosecutors alone bear the burden of proving his guilt. SAN JOSE, Calif. -- After erasing Anaheims 13-point lead in the standings the past two months, a one-goal deficit in the third period was only a minor speed bump for Brent Burns and the San Jose Sharks. Burns scored the game-winning goal with 3:59 to play after assisting on the tying goal earlier in the third to help the Sharks take sole possession of first place in the Pacific Division for the first time in more than three months with a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday night. "He is a wrecking ball," coach Todd McLellan said. "Hes a one-man wrecking crew out there when he plays that way." Joe Thornton tied the game earlier in the third and got his second assist on the game-winner for the Sharks, who have won seven of eight to move two points ahead of Anaheim although the Ducks have a game in hand. The Sharks, who trailed by 13 points after games on Jan. 15, have not been alone in first since Dec. 6. "This was something weve had our eye on for a while," forward Tommy Wingels said. "Now that weve got a grasp of it, we cant look back. Weve got to keep the pedal down and try to pull away. We worked this hard to get here, we cant give it up now." Patrick Marleau also scored and Antti Niemi made 26 saves for San Jose. Teemu Selanne and Mathieu Perreault scored for the Ducks, who have lost six of their last eight. Frederik Andersen made 25 saves. "It was a tough game but thats what happens when two good teams go at it and fight tooth and nail," Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau said. "Everybody knew the importance of this game. Both teams looked focused and played to the end." Burns, who assisted on Thorntons goal, was on the receiving end on the game-winner when he crashed the net and deflected Thorntons centring pass from the boards past Andersen. "He made a good play, shot to the middle there for me and I was lucky to get a stick on it and put it in," Burns said. Burns put together a personal highlight reel in the third period, getting the assist on Thorntons goal on a 2-on-1 and then flattening Corey Perry with a hit with his backside that energized the Sharks and their loud crowd a few shifts before his game-winner. "Hes just a beast out there," Thornton said. "Nobody can handle his size and his speed. It just forces you to try to keep up with him because hes going so fast.dddddddddddd Its great to watch." Selanne gave the Ducks the lead early in the third shortly after Anaheim killed off a San Jose power play. He started the play with an aggressive forecheck and Ryan Getzlaf took the puck away from Marty Havlat along the boards. Perry got the loose puck and his quick shot deflected off Selanne and into the net to make it 2-1. But the lead was short-lived as the Thornton line got the best of their matchup against Getzlaf, Perry and Selanne. "It was two breakdowns on us," Perry said. "They are a team that capitalizes on those things." The game had a playoff-type atmosphere as the fans at the Shark Tank were loud and on edge from the start, breaking into derogatory chants about the Ducks right after the opening faceoff. Neither team gave the opposition much space to operate in early in the game with only 10 combined shots in a tightly played first period that ended with the Sharks up 1-0. The Sharks capitalized on their one power-play chance when Luca Sbisa was sent off for roughing Tommy Wingels. Sbisa got away with one questionable hit on Wingels before shoving Wingels to the ice a second time, leading to the penalty. Thornton then sent a pass from behind the net to Marleau, who beat Andersen with a one-timer for his 29th goal. That was just the fifth power-play goal for San Jose in the past 21 games and the first point on the man advantage for Thornton in exactly two months. Anaheims struggling power-play unit struck in the second, getting the teams third man-advantage goal in the past 15 games. Selanne drew a pair of penalties from Logan Couture and Marc-Edouard Vlasic to give the Ducks a two-man advantage for 6 seconds. Perreault won a faceoff from Thornton and then got in position to one-time a rebound of Perrys shot for his 15th goal just seconds after Couture left the penalty box. NOTES: Selanne, who played two-plus seasons with the Sharks, got a warm ovation following a video tribute on his last scheduled trip to San Jose. ... The Ducks were without D Cam Fowler (left knee), C Nick Bonino (foot), F Matt Beleskey (illness) and F Kyle Palmieri (undisclosed). Fs Emerson Etem and Rickard Rakell were called up from the minors and dressed. ' ' '