Roger Goodell: 10 Reasons He Will Be Viewed As the Worst Commissioner in History
Roger Goodell had his work cut out for him when he took over for Paul Tagliabue as commissioner of the NFL back in 2006.
The league had enjoyed some pretty great teams under Tagliabue, and his accomplishments include expanding the league to 32 teams and generally turning the NFL into an even bigger business than it already was.
Goodell, on the other hand, has held the position for a little more than four years to this point, and suffice it to say that he's not a very popular person right now.
After all, it's because of Goodell and his stiff sensibilities that we now jokingly refer to the NFL as the "No Fun League," and it's looking right now like stubbornness is going to lead to a work stoppage when the CBA expires.
As such, the question is already worth asking: How will Roger Goodell be remembered?
Well, suffice it to say that we have some notions. In fact, we have 10 of them, all of which are meant to argue why Goodell will be viewed as the worst commissioner in sports history when all is said and done.
10. Hasn't Changed Blackout Rules
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Among the four major sports in America, the NFL has always had the most tyrannical blackout policy, and it has gone totally unchanged ever since it was implemented in 1973.
Given the recent hard times in our economy, a man with a softer heart and a clear head perhaps would have amended the blackout policy, thus allowing home fans to get the exposure to the home team that they crave so very much.
After all, wouldn't that help drum up interest and get people back out to the stadium?
It sure would. But individual markets mean less to Goodell and the NFL than overall interest in the sport, and the TV ratings suggest that it has not waned one bit.
Let's face it: Goodell could care less about the fans as long as we keep throwing our money at the league. If that means that watching a Raiders or Buccaneers home game is a special occasion, then so be it.
9. Hasn't Really Bettered the Experience at All
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I totally understand if the whole blackout thing just sounds like the personal gripe of some disgruntled Raiders fan, but such is the typical frame of mind among small-market fans.
If the blackout situation does not concern you, however, let me just ask you one question: Can you honestly think of anything that Roger Goodell has done in his tenure that has improved the whole NFL experience for its legions of fans?
Indeed, it seems like the only changes he's implemented since he was named as commish in 2006 have been custom-designed to take away, one by one, the many reasons why we're all in love with the game in the first place.
This is, of course, a rather huge problem. Read on to find out why.
8. Shadows of Commissioners Past
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I hinted at this in the introduction to this piece, but I'd like to take the time to discuss it a little further right here.
Like I said, Roger Goodell had his work cut out for him if he was going to carry on the legacy of the NFL as established under Paul Tagliabue, who did a fine job expanding on the success that the league enjoyed under Pete Rozelle.
The NFL is still as big a business as it ever was under Tagliabue, but it certainly seems like the progressive spirit of the whole thing has been lost.
Instead of expansion and forward thinking and the like, the emphasis now is all about keeping the house in order, and it feels like Goodell's efforts as commissioner are meant to clean up the mess that he inherited from his predecessors.
That would be tricky enough in and of itself, but it gets even worse when you consider how he decided to go about it.
Observe...
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7. No Fun League
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I, for one, have no problem with Goodell's personal conduct policy, as I think he's done a good job of punishing certain players who have definitely made the league look bad with their off-the-field actions.
However, the fact that it is now pretty much impossible to spike the ball, leap into the stands or even talk trash without earning a penalty flag is pretty outrageous. Football is not a gentleman's game like, say, golf. It is a very emotional sport, and asking players to bottle up their emotions is pretty unfair.
Shoot, you're not even allowed to wear a shirt that says "Why So Serious" on it. That got Buffalo Bills wide receiver Steve Johnson fined $5,000.
Speaking of which, that brings me to my next point.
6. Fines
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When normal people like you and I do things in the workplace that piss off the higher-ups, it usually means nothing more than a slap on the wrist and a good deal of personal shame.
However, messing up in the NFL could cost you quite a few hard-earned dollars.
To be sure, Goodell is doing the right thing by trying to deter things like helmet-to-helmet hits by fining the players who commit them. But he clearly has it out for players like Pittsburgh's James Harrison, who had to pay an arm and a leg in fines for "illegal" hits this past season.
There have been several players, including Harrison's teammate Troy Polamalu, who have pointed out that it's totally unfair for one man to decide who gets fined for what and how much.
Suffice it to say that they are absolutely correct.
5. Relationship with Players
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Goodell may not be in the good graces of NFL fans, but I think it's pretty obvious at this point that his workers dislike him even more than we do.
When we say "workers," we're of course referring to the players. As we've discussed, Goodell has pretty much made it his business to treat them almost as his own personal slaves, and he's really not doing himself any favors by saying he's all about player safety while pushing for two more regular season games at the same time.
Of course, all of this is part of a larger problem, one that more or less revolves around the commissioner's ego.
For that discussion, it's on to the next slide...
4. Iron Fist
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Bud Selig and David Stern oftentimes strike me as a couple of half-witted buffoons, and it never ceases to amaze that they are in charge of huge moneymaking organizations like Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association, respectively.
But compared to the regime that Goodell has turned the NFL into, Selig and Stern look like even-minded saints.
To be sure, Goodell's decidedly fascistic tendencies go beyond just the fines and suspensions he heaps on the league's various transgressors. Everything he does seems like a ploy to further establish himself as the infallible figure in all of sports, and that he knows what's best for his sport's interest more than anybody else under his control.
Make no mistake: History is only kind to dictators if they're the ones writing it. It certainly doesn't seem that such a comfortable fate is in the cards for Goodell.
3. Questionable Decisions
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There was always a possibility, no matter how slim, that Goodell's decision to rule over the NFL with an iron fist could have worked.
In order to pull it off, it all boiled down to one simple trick: Don't make any mistakes.
Naturally, you don't need me to tell you that he has made plenty of these.
Despite the fact I said I have no real problem with the whole personal conduct thing, I do think think some of the things Goodell has done with it have been pretty damning.
The best example I can think of was the Brett Favre sexting scandal. When Jenn Sterger's camp came out and said that they wouldn't sue Favre if the NFL suspended him, I, for one, thought that Goodell would do one of the league's greatest players a favor by doing just that.
Instead, Goodell just slapped him with a fine, and the situation is now ongoing.
You're obviously free to argue that point, but I don't think you can really argue that Goodell has not been very consistent in his decisions.
2. The High Road
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I don't think it would be too much of an exaggerated statement to say that Goodell's legacy as the NFL's commissioner rests in the outcome of the labor negotiations.
However, the way in which Goodell has carried on like he's the good guy in the whole thing despite the fact that he's just as guilty as anybody for the way things have devolved over recent months is pretty ridiculous.
Case in point: Goodell was clearly pleading his case to the fans when he said he would cut his salary to $1 if a new deal couldn't be reached.
Did he fool anybody with this promise? Of course not. If he thinks NFL-less fans are going to rest easy just because they know the big boss' pockets aren't loaded, he's even more foolish than he already appears to be.
So please, stop kidding yourself, Mr. Goodell. Nobody cares if you're taking the high road. Just get it done.
1. Lockout
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Obviously, nothing is set in stone quite yet concerning the lockout looming over the NFL in the event that the league and its players can't agree on a new CBA.
However, it is definitely looking right now like the lockout is a very real possibility and that the 2011 NFL season will not be played.
For many, the idea that an institution as successful as the NFL would be forced to take a year off is absolutely unfathomable.
Because of this, it really doesn't matter if Goodell is to blame for the work stoppage if it does indeed come to pass. Fans are going to blame him anyway, and they will never forgive him for it, no matter what he does in the future.
Just take a look at Bud Selig. He's done some great work since the baseball strike in the mid '90s, but he is still largely vilified. What will set Goodell apart and establish him as the worst commissioner in sports history, however, is that he let it happen to the NFL.
At the end of it all, that's really all there is to it.
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