Roger Goodell's Role in Disciplinary Process to Be Re-Evaluated by NFL Owners

NFL owners are reportedly planning to discuss changes to the league's disciplinary process after a judge vacated the four-game suspension levied against Tom Brady on Thursday. Deciding whether Commissioner Roger Goodell should handle appeals will be a key part of the discussion.

Mark Maske of the Washington Post reports multiple league sources confirmed the talks are expected to take place. There's no timeline for a resolution, however, with the next owners' meeting not scheduled until October.

The latest development comes on the heels of comments from Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, who admitted to D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that "change may be appropriate" to fix the process. He believes working with the NFLPA to find a resolution is the way to go.

"It's not healthy for the NFL to be in the kind of litigious position that it’s been for last several years," Blank said. "I think that the commissioner is working hard to hold up the respect and integrity of the game, the competitive balance of the game and the shield. Having said that, I think we have to find ways to get to a better place sooner with the NFLPA than the process that we've gone through."

Maske previously spoke with NFLPA president and Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Eric Winston who said, even before the Brady ruling, the disciplinary process must get altered.

"It would be hard to imagine any new deal if there's not a change," Winston said. "I can't imagine taking a new deal back to the players and say personal conduct isn't going to change."

The latest court loss apparently has the owners at least considering conversations toward a mutually agreeable resolution. Trey Wingo of ESPN highlighted some of the league's high-profile defeats in recent years:

While Goodell merely works in the owners' interests, his image has taken a serious hit in the realm of public opinion through the Deflategate mess. Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post wondered how the owners will handle that:

"

Goodell just the figurehead in Brady case. Powerful owners pushed this, so it'd be interesting if they turn around & make him the fall guy.

— Bart Hubbuch (@BartHubbuch) September 4, 2015"

The bottom line is that the process currently being used by the NFL is seriously broken. It seems each time one of these high-profile cases lands in court it ends up serving as further example of that. Change is necessary to get everybody back on the same page.

Winston told Maske he hoped for neutral arbitration when it comes to appeals of player discipline. That makes sense on paper, but whether the owners would be willing to go from full power by having Goodell in that role to no power may be a sticking point as the sides seek common ground.