NFL Commissioner Goodell Discussion

[Exe Gesis]

Fairly sure that if Goodell reduces his salary by a few million, he can afford to pay the referees full-time and to employ neutral staff to handle the game balls on game day.

That too. But individuals earning such coin never do such things (reduce ridiculous salary to help fund something else).

Was implying more the rub-n-tug between NE/Kraft and RG. That when Kraft is the one deciding how much incentives Goodell earns, then Goodell better be a good lapdog in regards #deflategate

 

[Woodson]

He's still a dead set douche.

Glad I'm not the only one who doesn't rate him.
http://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2015...oodell-mardi-gras-float-new-orleans-lolololol

 

[sparkyblue]

The boss hard at it:



I learned today at the office that apparently NFL staff get to participate in the Combine if we go. I'm aiming for next years and will get myself some punting practice in beforehand and get myself drafted

 

[Galactic]

Oh man I was hoping he tripped and smashed his head forcing him into retirement...

 

[sparkyblue]

Haven't made the trip to the right coast yet and met the big man. I'm sure it'll be awkward, but not sure who for.

 

[Exe Gesis]

Falcons expected to be stripped of their first round pick for noisegate.

Browns expected to be stripped of their first round pick for textgate.

Goodell when asked last week, talked of those two incidents in the "punishment will be quick and severe" tone.

But when asked about deflategate, Goodell said they will keep pushing back a decision till after the draft. In other words, protecting Kraft way back pre-super bowl, so they wouldn't get asterisked, and now pushing it back post-draft so they don't get stripped a first rounder.

Robert Kraft is the head of the Commissioner Bonus Committee. That's the committee that decides how much financial bonus the owners should award the NFL Commissioner at the end of every season. Last season Goodell made $43m in bonuses.

Goodell looking to sweep deflategate under the rug completely.

Falcons and Browns should trade their firsts to the Patriots before their punishments get handed down.

 

[Dirty Bird]

CouldBigFooty sue the NFL for grievances if they take the Falcons and Brown's draft picks?
We've already done our mock of the first round, and if that time and effort goes to waste, could it lead to heartbreak and we have a right to sue the NFL?

 

[TheGreatBarryB]

I think it's important to note that Kraft is the head of a committee. That there are other people voting on it, not just Kraft.

 

[Exe Gesis]

I think it's important to note that Kraft is the head of a committee. That there are other people voting on it, not just Kraft.

usual suspects tho...kraft, mara, rooney, jones

 

[Exe Gesis]

No wonder the Patriots, Steelers, Giants have won the most super bowls in Goodell's tenure, and have received the most favoritism.

-----

and then the Cowboys.... bless their hearts they try!

 

[juice t]

No wonder the Patriots, Steelers, Giants have won the most super bowls in Goodell's tenure, and have received the most favoritism.

-----

and then the Cowboys.... bless their hearts they try!

The Cowboys are punished by having to keep Jerrah as GM

 

[Exe Gesis]

The NFL has relinquished its tax-exempt status.

Commissioner Roger Goodell labeled the designation a "distraction." The NFL has repeatedly come under fire for its tax-exempt status as it racks up billions in revenues. As Profootballtalk points, the league's 32 teams are all taxable, for-profit businesses, however, so it's not as if the NFL has been dodging taxes. The move means Goodell's salary will no longer be public record.

Source:Profootballtalk on NBCSports.com

 

[Exe Gesis]

This is all for the Emperor Goodell..Now he can be paid a bazillion bucks, and no one will bit ch about it..Because they won't know...

--------


NFL ending tax exempt status also ends misunderstood legal issue. As I wrote in @SInow, NFL was already paying taxes:

http://www.si.com/vault/2014/09/29/106640023/the-case-for--the-nfls-tax-exemption

-----------


"The league saved only about $10 million a year from the tax break, according to the Citizens for Tax Justice. That's a rounding error for an enterprise the size of the NFL."

http://money.cnn.com/2015/04/28/news/companies/nfl-tax-exempt-status/

 

[Exe Gesis]

One more year of Goodell’s pay will be made public
Posted by Mike Florio on April 28, 2015, 8:39 PM EDT

Reuters
Yes, the NFL has decided to change the league office from tax exempt to taxable. It means that the league eventually will be able to keep secret the money paid to Commissioner Roger Goodell and other top executives.

But not yet. Specifically, one more report will be filed, showing the compensation given to Goodell and others through March 31, 2015. Which will reflect the money Goodell made — or didn’t make — in 2014, the year in which he presided over the Ray Rice P.R. debacle.

Goodell’s compensation hit $44 million in the year ending March 31, 2013, and dropped to a paltry $35 million in the year ending March 31, 2014. The dollars paid — or not paid — to Goodell in the next (and final) report will say plenty about ownership’s ultimate reaction to the scandal.

As explained by Daniel Kaplan of SportsBusiness Journal, the NFL has decided to abandon the tax-exempt status for the league office because mischaracterizations of the practice have become a distraction. And the mischaracterizations have been rampant dating back to 2009, when then-new NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith began attacking the tax-exempt status as part of the P.R. battle that hit boil during the lockout of 2011.

 

[Starburns_]

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

 

[Exe Gesis]

Missouri Supreme Court invalidates Commissioner as arbitrator
Posted by Mike Florio on May 5, 2015, 11:24 PM EDT

AP
When it comes to employment disputes involving individuals teams, the NFL traditionally stacks the deck in its favor, forcing disgruntled employees to agree to arbitration — with the Commissioner of the league presiding. Last week, the Missouri Supreme Court delivered what could become a fatal blow to the league’s obsession with allowing a non-lawyer to make legal decisions that could be influenced by business interests unrelated to what the law requires.

In a lawsuit filed more than four years ago by former Rams equipment manager Todd Hewitt, the Missouri Supreme Court invalidated the requirement of submitting all claims to arbitration resolved by the Commissioner. The Missouri Supreme Court based its conclusion in part on a fairly simply analysis of three provisions of the league’s Constitution and Bylaws.

First, the Court pointed out that Section 8.3 gives the Commissioner “full, complete, and final jurisdiction and authority to arbitrate . . . [a]ny dispute between any player, coach, and/or other employee of any member of the League and any member club or clubs.” Next, the Court pointed out that Section 8.1 requires the NFL to “select and employ a person of unquestioned integrity to serve as Commissioner of the League and shall determine the period and fix the compensation of his employment.” Then, the Court pointed out that Section 8.2 states that the “Commissioner shall have no financial interest, direct or indirect, in any professional sport.”

The provisions are clearly inconsistent; it’s impossible for the Commissioner to have “no financial interest” in “any professional sport” when he is paid by the league — and when the bulk of his compensation often comes from bonuses tied to the financial success of the league. More importantly, the Missouri Supreme Court concluded that the conflicting provisions and obvious bias of the Commissioner when “required to arbitrate claims against his employers” makes the requirement that employees submit claims to arbitration resolved by the Commissioner unenforceable.

While narrow in application to the State of Missouri (which serves as the home of two NFL teams, the Rams and Chiefs), the ruling provides a blueprint for employees who hope to avoid Commissioner-resolved arbitration in the other 21 states in which the NFL does business. It also gives the NFL Players Association and the NFL Referees Association a potential hammer for challenging in court the ability of the Commissioner to continue to serve as the arbitrator over claims brought by players and game officials, respectively.

While those provisions likely will have greater teeth because they appear in Collective Bargaining Agreements, the three provisions quoted by the Missouri Supreme Court from the NFL’s Constitution and Bylaws lay the foundation for a case-by-case attack on arbitration submitted to the Commissioner based on the inherent bias of the Commissioner.

It’s an obvious problem that has been hiding in plain sight for decades. At some point, the unions, the courts, and/or the NFL itself need to acknowledge that the Commissioner necessarily is incapable of being objective when resolving disputes involving the very teams that hire and pay him, and to come up with a more fair and unbiased procedure for resolving disputes.

 

[Exe Gesis]

Can Goodell be independent in #DeflateGate punishment?
Posted by Mike Florio on May 7, 2015, 2:20 PM EDT

On Tuesday night, word emerged of the Missouri Supreme Court concluding that Commissioner Roger Goodell is incapable of being a truly neutral arbitrator in cases involving one of the 32 owners who employ him.

Eventually, Goodell will have to make important decisions in a case involving a very influential owner. An owner who publicly, staunchly, and repeatedly defended Goodell when he was under siege for his office’s handling of the Ray Rice case. An owner who is one of only three who determine every year what Goodell does — or doesn’t — earn for his efforts.

Can Roger Goodell be truly neutral and independent when it comes to the punishment that will be imposed on the Patriots and on quarterback Tom Brady? Sure, owner Robert Kraft’s statement indicates in the final paragraph that he’ll accept whatever the consequences are. But every paragraph in the statement before acceptance contained plenty of anger, denial, bargaining, and depression.

Goodell’s statement from Wednesday points out that executive V.P. of football operations “Troy Vincent and his team will consider what steps to take in light of the report, both with respect to possible disciplinary action and to any changes in protocols that are necessary to avoid future incidents of this type.” Many have interpreted this to mean that Goodell will wash his hands of the matter by deferring to Vincent.

Surely, that won’t happen. Especially if/when punishment is imposed on quarterback Tom Brady. Under the labor deal, the Commissioner has final say over the discipline.

Typically, the suspicion is that “The Enforcer” puts his thumb on the scales when it comes to player punishment. With Brady, the suspicion will be that Goodell may be inclined to go easy, given his relationship with Kraft.

Either way, Goodell’s decision will receive extra scrutiny. Which means that the best move could be to appoint someone else to handle it.

Former Commissioner Paul Tagliabue would make the most sense. But after Taglibue’s handling of the Saints bounty scandal in 2012, it’s highly unlikely that Goodell would risk another not-so-subtle rebuke from his predecessor — especially since it seems that one or more people working for Goodell failed to let him know about the issue, possibly due to concerns that Goodell personally would have given the Patriots the warning that they otherwise didn’t receive.

 

[Woodson]

No wonder the Patriots, Steelers, Giants have won the most super bowls in Goodell's tenure, and have received the most favoritism.

-----

and then the Cowboys.... bless their hearts they try!

2005 Divisional Play-off... they tried to deny the Steelers with the bad call on the Polamalu INT. But the likes of the unheralded McFadden's and Ike Taylor's stepped up to make crucial plays to clinch the title.

 

[Woodson]

Can Goodell be independent in #DeflateGate punishment?
Posted by Mike Florio on May 7, 2015, 2:20 PM EDT

Either way, Goodell’s decision will receive extra scrutiny. Which means that the best move could be to appoint someone else to handle it.

Scrutiny that gets washed away soon after...the media can make anyone look bad and look incompetent like he has been with such debacle handling of the Rice assault saga.... the officials CBA hold out... just to list a few... bottom line burning Q is how he keeps his job?? is a travesty. How hard is it for anyone to step in and not make $$$ for the owners?

I can understand perfectly why the Steelers opposed the CBA... esp that it entitled him to make the final decisions with suspensions that have been totally inconsistent.

The media are doing all they can to make deflate-gate a bigger issue but I gather that delays and the next big story (because someone in the off-season will step up to snare the headlines) will make deflate-gate a watered down issue as time goes by before the pre-season kicks in.. there is more chance GG jumping on a plane to fly down to Melbourne than Brady getting suspended.

Pats will get a lil' fine...if anything.

 

[Brasher]

Didn't know where to post this but since Goodell is the face of the NFL Front Office.

Teams paid to honor military.

Friends and relatives of military personal probably contribute more financially buying and flying flags on their front porch than the NFL teams do "honoring" those that serve in the military.

 

[Woodson]

Scrutiny that gets washed away soon after...the media can make anyone look bad and look incompetent like he has been with such debacle handling of the Rice assault saga.... the officials CBA hold out... just to list a few... bottom line burning Q is how he keeps his job?? is a travesty. How hard is it for anyone to step in and not make $$$ for the owners?

I can understand perfectly why the Steelers opposed the CBA... esp that it entitled him to make the final decisions with suspensions that have been totally inconsistent.

The media are doing all they can to make deflate-gate a bigger issue but I gather that delays and the next big story (because someone in the off-season will step up to snare the headlines) will make deflate-gate a watered down issue as time goes by before the pre-season kicks in.. there is more chance GG jumping on a plane to fly down to Melbourne than Brady getting suspended.

Pats will get a lil' fine...if anything.

So I was wrong..

Moral of the post: play it down and expect less HOPING Karma makes changes in direction on the way to the bathroom…>> unzips and urinates on Goodell whilst he is sleeping whilst whispering with a wicked laugh… 'from Thomas Brady'… and obviously now Robert Kraft isn't on Goodell's speed dial Top Ten list..

 

[Exe Gesis]

NFL owner on Kraft-Goodell relationship: “Pretty much dead”
Posted by Darin Gantt on May 12, 2015, 7:29 AM EDT

AP
Robert Kraft has supported Roger Goodell in the past.

But with Goodell’s serious punishment of Kraft’s team, and Kraft’s staunch rebuttal last night, it seems they might not be as close as they once were.

In fact, they may not be close at all.

One unnamed owner (who has now forfeited the right to complain about leaks in his own building), told Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report the relationship between the Commissioner and the Patriots owner was “pretty much dead.”

“The main thing [NFL executive vice president Troy Vincent] said is true,” the owner said. “We need to make sure everyone is following the rules. All of us. I think Roger made the right decision and my guess is the rest of the owners agree.”

That doesn’t mean they’re not a little anxious about how this impacts business between Goodell and a man previously identified as one of his biggest supporters.

“Some of us [owners] are waiting a little nervously to see what Robert does next,” he said. “It’s positive that we sent a message that cheating will not be tolerated.

“I do think teams are looking around and saying, ‘What does this all mean?’ Teams are figuring it all out. But I think the bottom line is, don’t cheat, and you don’t have to worry about getting punished.”

That kind of moral certitude is probably popular (or at least easy to sell) in 31 other front offices at the moment, but belies a complicated truth, and a working relationship that might have just been strained beyond the point of repair.

 

[Exe Gesis]

Jerry Jones praises Roger Goodell and his “fairness”
Posted by Darin Gantt on May 13, 2015, 2:39 PM EDT

AP
At a time when his punishment of the Patriots has called into question his relationship with owner Robert Kraft, it’s interesting to see who Roger Goodell’s allies are.

One of them apparently resides in Dallas.

“He’s doing a great job, and I’m a supporter of his,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said, via Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com.

Jones went onto say that one of Goodell’s strengths is “fairness,” which more than a few people in Boston have wondered about lately.

But it’s not as if Goodell hasn’t had to come down on Jones, as prime free agent pickup Greg Hardy was suspended 10 games for last year’s domestic violence incident, and there was that whole circumventing the salary cap thing.

On the other hand, Goodell’s four-game suspension to Tom Brady takes him out of play for New England’s game against the Cowboys, so maybe that evens the scale.

While Kraft is viewed as having great influence in the league, the reality is Goodell has 31 other bosses, many of whom haven’t had the kind of recent success the Patriots have.

 

[Exe Gesis]

FIFA indictments are a warning to other sports leagues, including NFL
Posted by Mike Florio on May 27, 2015, 9:37 AM EDT

Getty Images
After years of being widely regarded as a thoroughly corrupt organization, the international body that runs the sport of soccer has been targeted aggressively by the U.S. government.

“Two generations of soccer officials abused their positions of trust for personal gain,” the U.S. Department of Justice said in a press release, “frequently through an alliance with unscrupulous sports marketing executives who shut out competitors and kept highly lucrative contracts for themselves through the systematic payment of bribes and kickbacks.”

Regardless of how this plays out for the nine FIFA executives who have been indicted and for FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who has not been indicted yet but could be once the nine indicted FIFA executives begin clamoring to cut deals with prosecutors, it’s a warning to every other sports league, including the NFL. If you become big enough and sufficiently controversial and notorious, the feds eventually will start poking around your business. And your business had better be in proper order, or the feds will keep poking around your business until there’s enough evidence to begin to present facts about your business to a grand jury.

Let’s be clear on this. There’s no specific reason to believe that the NFL or anyone connected to it currently is doing anything that would attract a full-blown federal prosecution. But enough issues and problems have arisen in recent months and years to possibly spark general curiosity regarding whether a crime or two may be lurking behind certain aspects of the NFL’s great fortune.

During his recent appearing on ESPN’s Outside the Lines, former federal prosecutor turned NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith pointed out the difference in treatment experienced by players who get in trouble and by owners who get in trouble.

“You have the cases of Mr. Irsay, where somebody unfortunately overdosed to death in his house, you have the case involving the owner in Cleveland where the business that he was connected with was found to be in violation of federal law, and you have the case of the [Wilfs] where a state court judge ruled that the owners of the Minnesota Vikings engaged in fraud,” Smith said. “One one hand you have a Commissioner who was overturned three times” in disciplining Saints players for the bounty scandal, Ray Rice, and Adrian Peterson, “and on the other hand you have a Commissioner who has looked the other way three times.”

In recent years, Congress has become the political body most commonly mentioned as potentially inclined to not look the other way when an NFL controversy goes mainstream. But the work of Congress typically occurs in public. Privately, prosecutors can scratch the surface and peel the onion and systematically compile the evidence that may or may not ever lead to an affirmative attack on what has become a very large American target.

Again, there’s no specific reason to believe that the NFL or anyone connected to it currently is doing anything that would attract a full-blown federal prosecution. But the FIFA case should serve as a warning to all sports leagues that the smoke of perceived incompetence could result in someone with subpoena power choosing to search for the fire of actual corruption.

 

[Exe Gesis]

Goodell contempt of court hearing set for August 13
Posted by Mike Florio on June 9, 2015, 9:12 AM EDT

Getty Images
On August 11, NFL owners will discuss whether pro football will be in Los Angeles. Two days later, Commissioner Roger Goodell will find out whether he’s in contempt of court.

Via Chris Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the NFL Players Association’s motion to hold the league and/or its Commissioner in contempt of court for failing to comply with Judge David Doty’s order in the Adrian Peterson case will be presented to the court in an August 13 hearing.

The mere fact that the motion has been placed on the docket for a hearing doesn’t mean that Judge Doty will find that the league and/or Goodell are in contempt of court.

The NFLPA contends that Doty’s order required the arbitration ruling confirming Peterson’s suspension to be vacated and sent back to arbitrator Harold Henderson for further proceedings — probably because that’s what the order expressly says. The NFL apparently believes that it was not required to comply with those provisions because it promptly appealed the decision from Judge Doty. However, the NFL did not file a motion with Judge Doty or the appeals court seeking a stay of the operation of the ruling pending appeal.

The NFL seems to be locked in to its position, with no action taken on the Peterson case since the contempt motion was filed last month.

Since Peterson was separately reinstated under the terms of the vacated arbitration ruling, the litigation at this point centers solely on the money Peterson will or won’t lose, and the power that the Commissioner does or doesn’t have to apply new policies retroactively to conduct occurring under prior rules. Peterson was suspended for violating the Personal Conduct Policy, under the terms of a beefed-up, post-Ray Rice policy and not under the terms of the existing policy at the time Peterson’s off-field issue arose.

There’s not much gray area in the resolution of the pending motion. Either the NFL failed to comply with the court order or it didn’t. So the hearing on August 13 either will be very interesting, or it won’t.