NEW ORLEANS — Everyone these days seems to have an opinion on everyone else's actions or inactions during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Saints' decision to have its draft war room at the Gayle Benson-owned Dixie Brewery Company facility in New Orleans East has met with some opposition by a USA Today sports columnist.
Nancy Armour slammed the Saints decision in a column published Monday.
"Congratulations, New Orleans Saints. You've finally found a way to be dumber than Mike Ditka on Draft Day."
Armour says the optics of having the war room as both dumb and dangerous.
Saints head coach Sean Payton, who has just recently recovered from a battle with COVID-19, didn't take long to respond, challenging the facts behind Armour's column.
"Nancy, you have 8 percent of your facts correct with this piece! Unbelievable. We need accurate reporting now more than ever. We're in this together. #facts.
Payton said Monday that six or seven people would be in the room and that does seem to be against what most are doing these days. Armour seems to hint in her column that the NFL shouldn't be holding the draft at this time at all.
Payton didn't further detail what he took issue with in Armour's column, but she didn't mention several things that are in the Saints' plans.
On the Dixie website, Payton is quoted as saying the team has already set up its draft headquarters and are working at the brewery because it is more out of the way than the Airline Drive location.
"We're kind of in a remote location," said Payton on the team's website. "It's really away from any high-traffic area and it's also closed. We're the only ones here."
Armour says that beside the optics being terrible, that even if the Saints take precautions and limit the people in the room, and practice social distancing. "That's beside the point."
She says the location will put the health and safety of the city in jeopardy.
Armour goes on to say that Saints fans will undoubtedly venture out to the location to see their hero Payton and that even if the Saints put security out there to keep that from happening, that would be a poor use of law enforcement resources in a city reeling from a coronavirus outbreak.
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