NFL Players Beware: Do Not Incur the Wrath of Roger Goodell

Plaxico Burress and Michael Vick can not be happy about recent news concerning their NFL futures. It has been reported that sources inside the NFL are saying Commissioner Roger Goodell is leaning toward a lengthy, maybe even indefinite suspensions for both players.

Regardless of how one feels concerning the eventual fairness of Goodell's ruling, if this turns out to be true, it can’t come as much of a surprise to anyone who even casually follows the NFL.

Since the day Goodell took over as the most powerful man in American sports, he has fashioned himself the judge and jury of all external issues concerning the NFL. The punishments he has dispensed in his short reign have shown him to be unforgiving, void of compassion, and exceedingly proactive.

Goodell has become to the owners what Darth Vader was for the Emperor, a harbinger of unilaterally justified retribution.

He has put the NFL galaxy on notice: if anyone hinders upon the interests concerning the empire that is the NFL, you will be dealt with without leniency or empathy.

All this may be of great comfort to the owners, but one has to wonder, is the wrath of Goodell good for the NFL as a whole?

The disciplinary rulings of the NFL commissioner draw so much media attention, they could be in the running for Americans fifth most popular pastime (my apologies to hockey and soccer). Some of this fixation is due to the enormous popularity of the NFL, but I believe there is an equally important aspect that plays into the spectacle that it has become.

The NFL’s product is so strong, it does not depend on any one entity to flourish. Unlike baseball where if the Yankees and or Red Sox are not constantly in the national discussion, the sport suffers, the NFL is so strong right now it does not even have a team in the countries second biggest market (Los Angeles). 

If the lack of a team in such a big market was adversely affecting the NFL they would have put a team in Los Angeles years ago. That alone is a testament to how strong of a position the NFL currently holds.

This method of thinking can be applied to the players also. What would happen to the NBA if for the last decade it was without its megastars the likes of LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, and Shaq?

The NBA would of had a decade of horrendous TV ratings resulting in the San Antonio Spurs, led by the ever fundamental yet boring Tim Duncan, creating a dynasty rivaling the 1960’s Boston Celtics. The very thought would have had David Stern waking up from nightmares in a cold sweat nigh after night.

In contrast, if you were to remove Tom Brady, Payton Manning, LaDainian Tomlinson, and Terell Owens from the NFL, the league would probably not bat an eye and just move on. Sure there may be a temporary marketing void to fill, but nothing like the chasm the NBA would have to overcome.

For instance, Vick ,not but a few years ago, was the face of an NFL franchise, had the most popular selling jersey in the sport, and $100 million contract to top it off.

All that and Goodell still scoffs at the idea of Vick returning this year. Can you imagine Stern saying Bryant after his rape accusation in Colorado?

“Ah, we really don’t need you right now, so sit out a year so you can learn your lesson.”  

There are many who say Vick has paid his debt to society and the NFL should respect that and let him play. If he is not allowed to play this year, he will have been out of the league for three whole seasons. Even for an elite athlete like Vick that’s a very tough hill to climb.

Others can not forgive Vick for his crimes and would be most glad to see him never play another NFL down. All this, as much as it may make for great talk radio is irrelevant. None of this matters to Goodell.

As for Burress, he has never approached the cultural consciousness of a Vick so what hope could he have for a 2009 NFL return. He might as well keep the cleats in the closet and dust off his golf clubs. Of course, that’s if he does not end up in prison. But even if he had public opinion on his side, as with Vick, it would not matter.

Goodell saw an opportunity to consolidate power and state his claim as the overlord of the nation's most popular sports commodity. He has done so both swiftly and effectively. Any recourse players could have to rebuke such power seems unattainable. 

It has become apparent that the power Goodell yields in the NFL is insurmountable, at least for now.

Goodell for better or worse knows in the sports galaxy of the United States, the NFL can rape, pillage, and plunder any players career and regardless if it is warranted or not, can get away with it. There are no teams or players that can bear leverage against this commissioner and hope for any meaningful results in their favor.

As opposed to weighing his options to judge what is both fair for the player, the teams and the league as a whole, Goodell can just ignore that do as he sees fit, to Oakland's Black Hole with everyone else

Will this unilateral approach the commissioner has taken come back to bite him in the future is to be seen. Unless the public starts losing its fervor for all things NFL, there does not look to be anything that can stand in the way of Darth Goodell and his command on the American sports galaxy.