We came as close as we’ll probably come in 2017 with the commissioner and majority owners moving to force Jerry out.
Goodell stood his ground forcing Jerry to back off and has gained my respect.
Roger has ruled over the most controversial and contentious era in the NFL. History will reflect more favorably on him than current emotions.
I respect your opinion on this and your willingness on more than one occasion to take a less than popular position. But I think Goodell, with a big assist from owners looking to him to absorb bad publicity, has made his own bed. At the start of his tenure, he chose to be, more or less, the New Sheriff in Town, and was framed as a fair-minded disciplinarian. I think he has the right instincts, in this area, but has let himself be swayed by special interests and his personal desire to be popular with many of those interests. In some cases, he has ceded responsibility and hidden behind recommendations made by people who have inherent biases. Worse, he has been wildly inconsistent in enforcing and justifying disciplinary measures.
Under Goodell's leadership -- and in part because he hasn't used his bully pulpit adequately or at all, in some cases, the league has seen trust in its on-field officiating erode and appears to have allowed the quality of its officials decline. This is a major failure. The league hasn't been proactive in instituting measures to build trust. While it is true, fans will always question individual calls and officiating crews, the NFL has provided its critics plenty of ammo in the form of unclear and sometimes counter-intuitive rules interpretations (What is a catch?). The league has been inconsistent in communicating and explaining failure -- such as in the case of the missed PI that allowed the Rams to beat the Saints.
Goodell has been indecisive, at times, and the league has paid the price. Controversies have festered and finally exploded because he didn't take a strong, decisive position at the outset. Other times he has been remarkably stubborn and unwilling to bend in the face of new information or incomplete investigation.
Goodell has benefited from the league's massive popularity, something he didn't create. He has also benefited from the changed nature of television and the value such evolution has placed on sports programming content. Even with its warts, the NFL is the most valuable television property. But Goodell has been responsible for allowing or even prompting the development of some of those warts.
None of this is to suggest that Goodell has done nothing of value or to imply that he has had no hand in furthering the league's interests. But his position pays a staggering salary. One would expect him to be so utterly qualified and so consistently excellent that such salary is earned. He is not a $1 million/year employee. He is paid to be one of the most effective executives in the global business world. Virtually every league season has begun, in recent years, under some type of controversy and/or cloud. Not all of that is Goodell's doing, but he has played a role. Regardless, he is paid to minimize such distractions and to solve such issues before they become national controversies.
Goodell's job is tough. It is very tough. But his compensation reflects that toughness, and he should be judged by excellence. He has fallen well short of excellence.
The fact owners with their own individual interests in mind have decided not to punish Goodell's failures makes them no less relevant. In defeat, actually, I admired Jerry Jones' efforts more than I have on occasions when he has been an apparent victor. I don't see a "win" over Jones as vindication for Goodell's failure.
