Two wrongs don't make it right, Roger
It is safe to say that there are now only 31 teams on the wall at the NFL headquarters 345 Park Ave. New York, New York. One team was singled out for all the sins of the past. One of the original eight teams of the American Football League, the original Boston Patriots who are now known as the New England Patriots, are persona non grata. The wall helmet with the Patriots logo got the same treatment as the Joe Paterno statue did at Penn State. Both were removed at night.
I hate to admit it, but former Oakland Raiders' owner Al Davis was correct in his assessment of the NFL powers to be.
ESPN:
Al Davis testified he was emotional during the call and told NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue that the commissioner was "killing the deal" at Hollywood Park. Tagliabue testified it was not an emotional conversation, that Davis neither mentioned "killing the deal" nor indicated he thought the league was acting improperly.
William Steward, one of the three jurors who voted for the Raiders, didn't consider Tagliabue a convincing witness, saying, "There were some things he just couldn't remember."
After 21 years of fighting in the courts, a Los Angeles jury rules against the Raiders in the $1.2 billion suit on May 21, 2001 following six-week trial. Neither side claimed victory, but the NFL didn't lose. That was the only thing that mattered.
USA Today:
The incident involving Rice also has transformed into a much larger national controversy about why the NFL indefinitely suspended the former running back this week when the league initially suspended him for only two games.
Commissioner Roger Goodell told CBS on Tuesday no one in the NFL had seen the longer video of the Rice and Palmer confrontation, which clearly shows the punch, until this week when it was posted online. But the Associated Press reported Wednesday that a law enforcement official said the video had been sent to the NFL five months ago.
In New Rochelle, the taking down of the NFL jersey and removal of the placard caused confusion among some students, particularly because the jersey Rice wore while a student at the school bearing the No. 5. "All that he has done and this is what they do to him?"
New Rochelle, NY is the same neck of the woods where Roger Goodell attended to high school. Rice had a successful tenure at New Rochelle, leading his team to a state title as a junior in 2003. On Oct. 24, 2004, Rice set the state record for rushing yards in a single game with 462 yards on 42 carries. In attendance for that record performance was Roger Goodell.
After failing to slip a fastball by the general public on explaining his two game suspension for Ray Rice, Roger Goodell got support from fellow NFL owners, particularly New England Patriots' owner Bob Kraft. When you needed a friend Roger, Bob Kraft was able to calm the masses who called for your dismissal.
When the roles were reversed, and Bob Kraft needed a fair shake, he became the red-headed stepchild. I would guess that your former friend Bob Kraft will not go quietly into the night after the four game suspension for QB Tom Brady, $1 million fine, loss of 2016 first round pick and 2017 fourth round selection was issued by your office. It is too bad Al Davis wasn't around for this battle.
Roger Goodell became commissioner in 2006, and earned $105 million from the 2008 through 2012 seasons. Goodell makes more than many chief executive officers. Wal-Mart (WMT) CEO Michael Duke heads up the country's biggest company, with $476 billion in sales, and he earned just $20.7 million in 2012.
Rex Tillerson, CEO of the second largest company, Exxon Mobil (XOM), came close to matching Goodell's 2012 paycheck, taking home total compensation of $40.3 million that year.
"Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned." While the NFL has changed its heading to no longer being ruled a nonprofit so that salaries are no longer public knowledge, Roger Goodell is going to need all of his annual $44 million nest egg to fend off Bob Kraft, and those that join forces with him.
Who says that NFL news is nonexistent following the draft, and silent until training camp? Bob Kraft seems like a reasonable businessman. DeFlateGate "far execeeded any reasonable expectation."
Paul Murphy is a freelance writer from New Hampshire. .
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