Roger Goodell Faces A Number of Issues

[chevss454]

Florio made a guest appearance on MMQB with an article that discusses the most pressing problems Goodell and the NFL are facing. Player discipline/deflategate with Goodell as judge, jury and executioner only ranked 6th.

6. Team and player discipline

Not long after Roger Goodell succeeded Paul Tagalibue as commissioner, agents began to grumble about the hard line the league office suddenly was taking regarding alleged violations of the substance-abuse and PED polices. Reasonable compromises no longer were available as the NFL took full advantage of its final say to impose its will on players.
Somehow, Goodell was persuaded in 2014 by the union to relinquish his power over these matters to neutral arbitration. But he still retains judge/jury/executioner status on matters relevant to the integrity of the game, the principle that fueled the Deflategate controversy. Over the 32 teams, Goodell’s power remains absolute. He imposes the discipline and handles the appeal, giving the member clubs no real recourse.


The disciplinary power over players and teams in a non-drug/PED setting has been used several times in recent years, creating results that seemed to some (especially the team and players involved, and their fans) objectively unfair. Some of these cases include the salary cap penalties against Dallas and Washington in 2012, the Saints bounty scandal, Deflategate and more.
All too often, the league office ignores evidence that a violation may be cultural, opting to single out one team, make an example of the alleged culprits, and scare straight every other team that is doing the same thing. In scrapping the player suspensions imposed for the bounty scandal, Tagliabue (appointed by Goodell as the arbitrator under pressure from lawsuits challenging Goodall’s neutrality) made an eloquent but pointed case for properly addressing rule breaking that isn’t isolated to one team.
Tagliabue’s case for making cultural changes reflects a much a better way to do business when it comes to discipline and rules violations. It’s far more fair and just to all players and teams. But the league office stubbornly insists on retaining the ability to do what it wants, when it wants, how it wants, disregarding reasonable and persuasive arguments for a more balanced and neutral approach. Unfortunately for the league, this approach has alienated the union, many players, and entire fan bases that will forever believe their favorite team got screwed.
If the league office ever chooses to opt for self-awareness on these issues, here’s the only question that needs to be asked: Is having and using (and potentially abusing) that kind of power over teams and players really worth the damage that has been done to the underlying relationships?

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/07/16/mike-florio-monday-morning-qb-guest-roger-goodell-nfl

I'm convinced that Goodell isn't smart enough to lead the NFL through all this.

 

[patfan64]

Florio made a guest appearance on MMQB with an article that discusses the most pressing problems Goodell and the NFL are facing. Player discipline/deflategate with Goodell as judge, jury and executioner only ranked 6th.

http://mmqb.si.com/mmqb/2016/07/16/mike-florio-monday-morning-qb-guest-roger-goodell-nfl

I'm convinced that Goodell isn't smart enough to lead the NFL through all this.

And Deflategate is Goodell's first victory over the NFLPA in the court system.

What can we expect down the road? Suspensions for excessive celebrations? Suspensions for chin straps not being buckled? Suspensions for shirts being untucked?

 

[BradyGirl]

Anything Roger wants.

You can see what a petty tyrant he is when pizza is ordered in and the standing order is that NO ONE can take a slice before Emperor Goodell. That says something about a man.

 

[patfan64]

Anything Roger wants.

You can see what a petty tyrant he is when pizza is ordered in and the standing order is that NO ONE can take a slice before Emperor Goodell. That says something about a man.

I forgot about that.

What a doosh.

 

[Beaglebay]

He's the official taster of the NFL--if he doesn't keel over, everyone else is safe.

That's the only job he's qualified for.

 

[bideau]

He's the official taster of the NFL--if he doesn't keel over, everyone else is safe.

That's the only job he's qualified for.

I think we all came to that conclusion way back near the beginning. He gets paid the big bucks to be the pinata for the owners. He's their "fall guy".

 

[BostonTim]

He's the official taster of the NFL--if he doesn't keel over, everyone else is safe.

That's the only job he's qualified for.

Huzzah!


Cheers, BostonTim

 

[chevss454]

Florio forgot to write about things like "transparency" and "integrity" that challenge the league office and Goodell. Love Florio for this

After initially declining comment regarding the claim from Ballers executive producer Mark Wahlberg that Commissioner Roger Goodell personally called Wahlberg in an effort to kill the show, the NFL has opted to go on the record to say that Goodell did no such thing.
“Love Marky Mark (good vibrations is a classic) but this call from [Goodell] never happened,” fairly new NFL senior V.P. of communications Natalie Ravitz said on Twitter.
The tweet was directed to Deadspin’s story regarding Wahlberg’s claim that a call was made. Ravitz directed similar tweets to Bleacher Report and the Hollywood Reporter regarding their stories passing along Wahlberg’s claim.
This stream of tweets marks a sharp reversal for the league regarding Ballers. Previously, the league ignored the show, which brazenly uses team names and logos and characterizes NFL players in a manner similar to the long-defunct Playmakers show on ESPN, which the league specific tried to (and did) eliminate. Indeed, when PFT specifically asked the league office whether the call happened, the league office’s official position was that it declined comment.
Maybe in this age of social-media and Pokemon Go the best way to get the league office to go on the record is to tweet an allegation as gospel truth without asking for comment first and wait for someone to respond on Twitter. Unless, of course, the report in question is that 11 of 12 footballs confiscated from Marky Mark’s favorite team were at least 2.0 pounds under the minimum PSI required by rule.
The patently false claim still has never been corrected, by Ravitz or anyone else employed by the NFL.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...th-denial-of-goodell-effort-to-scrap-ballers/

 

[Beaglebay]

Subpoena Goodell's cell phone!

 

[spacecrime]

And Deflategate is Goodell's first victory over the NFLPA in the court system.

What can we expect down the road? Suspensions for excessive celebrations? Suspensions for chin straps not being buckled? Suspensions for shirts being untucked?

Only for the Patriots

 

[Roberto71]

I love the fact that elsewhere in that article, we're now seeing that bitter old evil c**t Shula being named for abusing players. His name is now popping up in a few articles for this.

A nationwide class action targeting all 32 NFL teams regarding the use of painkillers could put that play-or-else culture in the spotlight, with allegations that coaches like Don Shula and Mike Tice threatened to cut players who didn’t use potent drugs to mask pain and play. With the case surviving an initial effort to throw it out of court, the league will have to provide information, documents, and testimony regarding whether and to what extent players were informed of the risks of using these medications and/or threatened to take a shot of Toradol or hit the road, Jack — which could make settlement even more prudent than it was in the concussion lawsuits, which were resolved before they ever got to the “discovery” phase, when evidence potentially supporting allegations of wrongdoing is harvested.

 

[HarpoonIPA]

My only question is this, when the truth comes out about the natural causes of PSI dropping in wet and cold weather. What do we get back from the NFL? How does Brady get those 4 games back? This shitstorm is far from over.

 

[Mazz22]

Goodell's short list includes the following:
1) Extend regular season to 18 games
2) Extend playoffs by adding another wild card or two
3) Expand the game globally
4) Continue to cover concussions
5) Continue to handle player discipline like a moron

He will not focus on anything present in the game like the crap QB play and the majority of colleges that do not run a pro style offense thereby killing the prospects that are coming into the league.

He will continue to make stupid rules in the vein of making the game safer when he is actually trying to make more high scoring to increase FF.

In a a nutshell, if this guy stays commish for the long term, the NFL will implode as Cuban predicted. I will have my popcorn and enjoy watching the carnage.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

Goodell's short list includes the following:
1) Extend regular season to 18 games
2) Extend playoffs by adding another wild card or two
3) Expand the game globally
4) Continue to cover concussions
5) Continue to handle player discipline like a moron

He will not focus on anything present in the game like the crap QB play and the majority of colleges that do not run a pro style offense thereby killing the prospects that are coming into the league.

He will continue to make stupid rules in the vein of making the game safer when he is actually trying to make more high scoring to increase FF.

In a a nutshell, if this guy stays commish for the long term, the NFL will implode as Cuban predicted. I will have my popcorn and enjoy watching the carnage.

Ratings are on the RISE.

And overseas and another playoff broadcast will add billions more.

He's going nowhere. He's exactly what they want. To a T. And he's paid over $40 mil per.

Any normal person would have been clamoring to the press during this whole inflation issue. Not Rog. He has the innate ability to lock himself in league office and count stacks, ignoring the people. Polar opposite to how Wells acted when his bogus piece was shredded. And the owners LOVE it.

 

[Mazz22]

Ratings are on the RISE.

And overseas and another playoff broadcast will add billions more.

He's going nowhere. He's exactly what they want. To a T. And he's paid over $40 mil per.

Any normal person would have been clamoring to the press during this whole inflation issue. Not Rog. He has the innate ability to lock himself in league office and count stacks, ignoring the people. Polar opposite to how Wells acted when his bogus piece was shredded. And the owners LOVE it.

That type of leadership never has staying power for the long haul. The concussion issue is going to level the NFL and there will be nothing Rog can do about it except try to tread water as long as he can.

 

[Dwight Schrute]

That type of leadership never has staying power for the long haul. The concussion issue is going to level the NFL and there will be nothing Rog can do about it except try to tread water as long as he can.

True. But generally the plaintiffs in that pre date Roger.

Significantly.

 

[Mazz22]

True. But generally the plaintiffs in that pre date Roger.

Significantly.

I don't think it is just about lawsuits. The game has been altered in terms of the rules and how it is played because of the concussions. The new rules have almost made the game unrecognizable in just the past 10 years. Now there is real talk about getting rid of the kick-off. I mean that is just insane.

Rog is fighting a losing battle on this front. As long as their is tackling and hitting, concussions are never going away. Calvin Johnson said concussions happen on every play. Every play.

I mean now much longer can the NFL really get away from this? You know they are lost when Irsay compared playing football to taking aspirins. I mean that is where ownership is. There is no answer except to stop playing. We are already seeing high school programs being eliminated. Pros are retiring earlier and prospects are walking away altogether. The movie Concussion said all it would take for the NFL to go under would be for 10 percent of parents to not put their kids in football. That is happening and will continue to increase.

 

[PatriotInIndy]

I guess this is a good place to share this. The NFL withheld psi measurements from the officials.

http://boston.cbslocal.com/2016/07/...s-from-officials/?cid=twitter_985thesportshub

 

[Dwight Schrute]

I don't think it is just about lawsuits. The game has been altered in terms of the rules and how it is played because of the concussions. The new rules have almost made the game unrecognizable in just the past 10 years. Now there is real talk about getting rid of the kick-off. I mean that is just insane.

Rog is fighting a losing battle on this front. As long as their is tackling and hitting, concussions are never going away. Calvin Johnson said concussions happen on every play. Every play.

I mean now much longer can the NFL really get away from this? You know they are lost when Irsay compared playing football to taking aspirins. I mean that is where ownership is. There is no answer except to stop playing. We are already seeing high school programs being eliminated. Pros are retiring earlier and prospects are walking away altogether. The movie Concussion said all it would take for the NFL to go under would be for 10 percent of parents to not put their kids in football. That is happening and will continue to increase.

Bullshit.

EVERY player in the NCAA would jump at the chance to continue on Sundays.

Maybe the product could suffer, but there's no evidence the few who walk away from the game are the most gifted or driven. Chances are they aren't. How many rags to riches downtrodden upbringing do you generally hear? More the norm. And that creates the drive IMO.

A lot of these folks have few options. Listen to half of them talk. They aren't at Miami on a scholastic scholarship. Eliminate football and it's a blue collar existence for almost all, should they choose to live proper.

What's better in their mind: live to 70 with your millions making millions?

Or live to 75-80 at middling wage on the front porch collecting social security?

Most will still take their chances with the game.

Look no further than boxing.

We all have seen or heard someone "punch drunk". Yet it's still around. Replaced by a sport for the most part even more risky.

 

[Mazz22]

Bullshit.

EVERY player in the NCAA would jump at the chance to continue on Sundays.

Maybe the product could suffer, but there's no evidence the few who walk away from the game are the most gifted or driven. Chances are they aren't. How many rags to riches downtrodden upbringing do you generally hear? More the norm. And that creates the drive IMO.

A lot of these folks have few options. Listen to half of them talk. They aren't at Miami on a scholastic scholarship. Eliminate football and it's a blue collar existence for almost all, should they choose to live proper.

What's better in their mind: live to 70 with your millions making millions?

Or live to 75-80 at middling wage on the front porch collecting social security?

Most will still take their chances with the game.

Look no further than boxing.

We all have seen or heard someone "punch drunk". Yet it's still around. Replaced by a sport for the most part even more risky.

Football is not the only sport out there for the poor and under privileged. Many of the top athletes could have played a different sport and many are doing so today. Opting for baseball, basketball and soccer over football and many parents are not putting their sons in football so they are never getting to the NCAA. That is the issue. This is grass roots at this point. And it is not just concussions. It is the overall injuries that football causes on top of the short career and brain issues. It is epidemic which is why the NFL was trying to coerce the BU study with professors it felt would support its lies. All you have to do is follow how the NFL has handled the issue to know just how big it has become. There is no answer except to make the game look less and less like football which Goodell has already done and continues to do.