The Roger Goodell thread

[HawkAroundTheClock]

I think Kearly, Scotte, and TXHawk have connected the dots on this. Mizzou too.

I found ESPN's coverage yesterday interesting. After one day of reporting all the info we've heard from other sources, on Tuesday I saw three different shows boil it down to the League's company line (requested tape; no see tape) and then Ray and Janay's responses, with hers calling out the media for causing pain.

The FACT is that trusted reporters transcribed in accurate detail what was on the tape, as told to them by NFL sources. Just a couple days into this mess and ESPN is already omitting this from the narrative. If everything the NFL did was on the up-and-up, they could've already provided all the documentation to support their story. But they're story is BS, so they can't.

 

[Hawks46]

Whether or not Goodell handled this badly, he's not going to get fired and he story was verified.

That doesn't explain King or Mortensen reporting that Goodell and/or NFL sources had seen the tape in July. Or the specific details of the tape which proved it had been watched by someone who relayed an account of it.
Either they lied then or they lied now. A lie happened.

Oh, I agree. I'm not defending Goodell here. But the DA came out and said they wouldn't have given the tape to the NFL if it had asked. I think that covers him. I'm just wondering, how is he going to lose his job ? What's the impetus? A bunch of fans are pissed ?

We live in a country where the government uses branches of itself to persecute citizens and intimidate them into following certain political courses that those in power want (the IRS scandal). Months later, it was literally forgotten. 10 years ago, maybe 15, Obama would've been impeached for it, now it was barely mentioned. Leonard Little and that WR from the Eagles (having a brain fart) literally killed people with their cars (wasn't that Tagliabue's watch?) and they went right back into the league....and the fervor died down within games, not years. That guy from the Dallas Cowboys is about to come back into the league after just killing his team mate drunk driving. Ray Rice hit his fiancee. He didn't kill anyone. Fans are all going to quit watching football over this? No.

So what's going to cause Goodell to lose his job ? We live in a society where the vast majority of people are so distracted that none of these "huge" social issues ever gets followed up on. I'd be astounded if the owners move to get rid of Goodell.

(I'm not getting political or taking a political side here, just using that example to show society's indifference after time)

 

[Anonymous]

Any Vegas odds on the Goodell firing yet?

 

[MizzouHawkGal]

Any Vegas odds on the Goodell firing yet?

For a bet like that you would have to look and see what the London bookies are doing. They pretty much allow bets on anything I imagine.

 

[Uncle Si]

Whether or not Goodell handled this badly, he's not going to get fired and he story was verified.

That doesn't explain King or Mortensen reporting that Goodell and/or NFL sources had seen the tape in July. Or the specific details of the tape which proved it had been watched by someone who relayed an account of it.
Either they lied then or they lied now. A lie happened.

Oh, I agree. I'm not defending Goodell here. But the DA came out and said they wouldn't have given the tape to the NFL if it had asked. I think that covers him. I'm just wondering, how is he going to lose his job ? What's the impetus? A bunch of fans are pissed ?

We live in a country where the government uses branches of itself to persecute citizens and intimidate them into following certain political courses that those in power want (the IRS scandal). Months later, it was literally forgotten. 10 years ago, maybe 15, Obama would've been impeached for it, now it was barely mentioned. Leonard Little and that WR from the Eagles (having a brain fart) literally killed people with their cars (wasn't that Tagliabue's watch?) and they went right back into the league....and the fervor died down within games, not years. That guy from the Dallas Cowboys is about to come back into the league after just killing his team mate drunk driving. Ray Rice hit his fiancee. He didn't kill anyone. Fans are all going to quit watching football over this? No.

So what's going to cause Goodell to lose his job ? We live in a society where the vast majority of people are so distracted that none of these "huge" social issues ever gets followed up on. I'd be astounded if the owners move to get rid of Goodell.

(I'm not getting political or taking a political side here, just using that example to show society's indifference after time)

Ther description of the video was given to him, and the league, and the Ravens. Also, how is it that one video was available and the other was not?

and again, he interviewed a victim of domestic abuse with the criminal at the same time, then allowed the joint parade in front of the media charade to happen.

I feel like their are high school counselors with more tact at dealing with such a sensitive issue than Goodell here. His job is certainly on the line, whether he saw the video or not.

My issue with Goodell is he has failed to set a precedent in any of his dealings. he seems insulated and dicatorial in his punishments, and for whatever reason is far more concerned with the consistency of punishments regarding drugs, PEDs and uniforms than he is over the crimes that actually impact the league's fan base. His arrogance to those crimes and the damage it inflicts on the league suggests he believes the NFL can survive anything.

I guess he's right thus far

 

[HawkAroundTheClock]

I just saw the Goodell interview with CBS This Morning. When the interviewer asks (paraphrasing):

Did the NFL drop the ball or mismanage the investigation?

Roger answers that they have been honest and didn't see the tape.

His response lasted no more than 30 seconds. He blinked his eyes at least 26 times.

Just an observation.

 

[RolandDeschain]

[tweet]https://twitter.com/SI_DougFarrar/status/509782933775740929[/tweet]

 

[DavidSeven]

John Mara (NY Giants' Owner) full statement:

“Many of us were dissatisfied with the original two-game suspension of Ray Rice. The Commissioner took responsibility for that in his August 28th memo to the owners when he stated, ‘I didn’t get it right. Simply put, we have to do better. And we will.’ He then took appropriate steps to address this matter. Our policy now on domestic violence has been strengthened. We have all learned a valuable lesson from this episode. We now have a strong partnership with anti-domestic violence groups, and we will be a better League for it going forward.

“My understanding is that the League and the Ravens made repeated requests to obtain the video of the Ray Rice incident and were denied each time. The notion that the League should have gone around law enforcement to obtain the video is, in my opinion, misguided, as is the notion that the Commissioner‘s job is now in jeopardy. The video is appalling, and I believe that the team and the League took appropriate action after they finally had the opportunity to view it.

“There is no place for domestic violence in our sport or in our society, and we are committed to doing our part to prevent such heinous acts going forward.”

Bob Kraft (Patriots' Owner) on Goodell:

"The way he has handled this situation himself, coming out with the mea culpa in his statement a couple weeks ago, or 10 days ago, and setting a very clear policy of how we conduct ourselves in the NFL, I thought was excellent. Anyone who is second guessing that doesn't know him."

[. . .]

"I don't want to get in the role of law enforcement or things I don't understand. It's just -- the good news is, people did the right thing."

 

[volsunghawk]

John Mara (NY Giants' Owner) full statement:

“Many of us were dissatisfied with the original two-game suspension of Ray Rice. The Commissioner took responsibility for that in his August 28th memo to the owners when he stated, ‘I didn’t get it right. Simply put, we have to do better. And we will.’ He then took appropriate steps to address this matter. Our policy now on domestic violence has been strengthened. We have all learned a valuable lesson from this episode. We now have a strong partnership with anti-domestic violence groups, and we will be a better League for it going forward.

“My understanding is that the League and the Ravens made repeated requests to obtain the video of the Ray Rice incident and were denied each time. The notion that the League should have gone around law enforcement to obtain the video is, in my opinion, misguided, as is the notion that the Commissioner‘s job is now in jeopardy. The video is appalling, and I believe that the team and the League took appropriate action after they finally had the opportunity to view it.

“There is no place for domestic violence in our sport or in our society, and we are committed to doing our part to prevent such heinous acts going forward.”

Bob Kraft (Patriots' Owner) on Goodell:

"The way he has handled this situation himself, coming out with the mea culpa in his statement a couple weeks ago, or 10 days ago, and setting a very clear policy of how we conduct ourselves in the NFL, I thought was excellent. Anyone who is second guessing that doesn't know him."

[. . .]

"I don't want to get in the role of law enforcement or things I don't understand. It's just -- the good news is, people did the right thing."

Translation: Goodell does our will, and he does it exceptionally well. Our will is making more money and more money, and screw everything else. We will not be slaughtering the golden goose.

 

[RolandDeschain]

Translation: Goodell does our will, and he does it exceptionally well. Our will is making more money and more money, and screw everything else. We will not be slaughtering the golden goose.

I HAVE A DREAM...A dream that, one day, my years of harping on people who blame Goodell for the actions and wants of the owners will result in some people placing the blame where it should be - with the owners that dictate everything the NFL commissioner does.

 

[HawkAroundTheClock]

Just re-watched the Goodell interview with CBS. It was more like <15 seconds. 26 blinks in <15 seconds.

Maybe it was just really bright in there.

Although, he didn't blink nearly as much when he was answering other questions that didn't involve him saying "we were honest." Hmmm...

 

[hawk45]

***EDIT***

For the most part all the things Goodell is excoriated for are inevitable given the mandate from the owners and the schizophrenia of fans and players.

I will say that though I believe Goodell for the most part cannot win, the one sin that he has to own entirely with a public job like this is seriously, seriously miscalculating the political impact here. In most cases I would understand him taking the word of the PD or casino or whatever, but the earlier video even outside of the elevator should have put him on high alert that this could be a career-ender to get wrong. I can see an argument that having a feel for the PR impact of situations needs to be near the top of the list for a commissioner, and he failed miserably, miserably here. I can see canning him for that.

In perspective, one wife-beater shouldn't be so important compared to all the other criminals in the NFL nobody cares about. But in politics that's how it goes.

 

[HawkAroundTheClock]

BREAKING: ESPN saying the AP quotes a law-enforcement official who claims the NFL did see the elevator video. More to come, I'm sure.

 

[RolandDeschain]

UH OH, SPAGHETTIOS!

[tweet]https://twitter.com/AP/status/509806406934204416[/tweet]

So the cops have already said it'd have been illegal for them to do this. Yet a cop's admitting to having done it?

Man, all this BS needs to get straightened out so we can see the real story, whatever it is.

 

[Jville]

UH OH, SPAGHETTIO'S!

[tweet]https://twitter.com/AP/status/509806406934204416[/tweet]

A culture of liars >>> [urltargetblank]http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/09/10/browns-punter-says-he-didnt-talk-to-antonio-brown-after-game/[/urltargetblank]

That law enforcement source also played a voicemail from an NFL office number for the Associated Press. In the voicemail, a female voice confirms receiving the video, expresses thanks for sending it, and says, “You’re right. It’s terrible.”

 

[TwistedHusky]

I would be shocked if the NFL saw the tape, though I am certain that someone connected to them did, shared the contents of it and then shared that it might not be in the best interests of the NFL to view it.

I have dealt with a lot of executives and they love to engage in willful ignorance in order to preserve "plausible deniability".

There is no reason to think that an organization making this much money would not immediately go into risk minimization mode with any star engaging in a crime or caught in attempting the same. And it probably worked before with other players, as I simply do not believe that this is the first time something like this has happened.

The challenge is that this is the first time a video leaked. So there is an immediate emotional reaction by the public that has to be addressed sated. (Which I find interesting considering everyone was aware that she was removed unconscious in the elevator...how did they think she got that way? The allegation was never that she got drunk, it was that he hit her. People knew he hit her but until they saw it they did not get as angry.)

Goodell is in full CYA mode. This means there are probably people barely connected to the event that are going to be thrown out for people to burn, because executives in CYA mode immediately start lighting things on fire and pointing fingers hoping that the flames will distract people from coming after them. His problem is that he set up the disciplinary system where he holds ultimate sway, so it become difficult to blame others.

Either way, it looks like someone wants a head so whether it is Goodell or someone else, someone has to go down for the noise to die down.

 

[Scottemojo]

The challenge is that this is the first time a video leaked. So there is an immediate emotional reaction by the public that has to be addressed sated. (Which I find interesting considering everyone was aware that she was removed unconscious in the elevator...how did they think she got that way? The allegation was never that she got drunk, it was that he hit her. People knew he hit her but until they saw it they did not get as angry.)

People were shocked because brutality is shocking. Add to that that the NFL and the Ravens missed no chance to imply via the GF/Wife that she played quite a role in the unseen incident. So yeah, when they saw it, it was not quite the bill of goods that had been sold.

 

[Cartire]

I wish people would stop brining up the 16 game ban for weed. This is already laid out in the CBA. I'm not saying its right, it's not, and very stupid. But Goodell isn't handing out year long bans on a whim.

No, the crimes don't fit the punishment, but the drug policy is not on Goodell, and people need to remember this.

So please stop comparing them just to discredit Goodell.

His handling of the rice situation is discredit enough.

 

[rigelian]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000392274/article/roger-goodell-we-never-were-granted-chance-to-see-video?campaign=Twitter_atl_sessler

We had not seen any videotape of what occurred in the elevator," Goodell told Norah O'Donnell on CBS Evening News. "We assumed that there was a video. We asked for anything that's pertinent. But we were never granted that opportunity.

Paul Loriquet, a spokesperson for the New Jersey Attorney General's Office, confirmed to NFL Media on Tuesday, "It's grand jury material. It would have been improper -- in fact, illegal -- for the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office to provide (the video) to an outside/private/non law-enforcement entity."

And he still could have requested it from Ray Rice himself.

Also does not explain how NFL leaks to reporters contained information only those with knowledge of the video would know.

This is only getting started.

I'm not so sure about whether Rice could have given the league the tape. Quite often evidence is given pursuant to protective orders. Rice's counsel might have possessed the tapes but turning it over to a third party might be a problem.

As for leaks, Rice and his fiance were interviewed. The leaks may be based on that rather than any video.

 

[Scottemojo]

From a memo Goodell sent to owners today:

In the memo, which was posted on NFL.com on Wednesday, Goodell said the league’s “understanding of New Jersey law is that the casino is prohibited from turning over material to a third party during a law enforcement proceeding, and that doing so would have subjected individuals to prosecution for interference with a criminal investigation.”

Goodell continued: “Moreover, our longstanding policy in matters like this — where there is a criminal investigation being directed by law enforcement and prosecutors – is to cooperate with law enforcement and take no action to interfere with the criminal justice system. In addition, in the context of an ongoing criminal investigation, information obtained outside of law enforcement that has not been tested by prosecutors or by the court system is not necessarily a reliable basis for imposing league discipline.”

I just want to point out once again that the criminal investigation ended nearly a month and a half before the initial suspension.

Meaning that the league had plenty of time to request the video from the casino after the investigation was over.

Of course, with the new report that a law officer sent it to the league, and it was confirmed as both received and viewed, maybe now it explains why the league never tried to get the video from the casino. They already had it.