I read the article, but missed this point until I saw a tweet from Michael Hurley about it: Goodell wasn't at this appeal hearing.
Kevin Manara, Adopho Birch, Jeff Pash and Lisa Friel represented the NFL. They aren't lightweights, but where was the commissioner? Why did he skip this? Maybe it conflicted with his daily press conference, but it seems odd that he wouldn't be present at a domestic violence-related hearing after making it such a priority for the league and himself.
Who knows, that may have even played a role in the arbitrator deciding the reduce the suspension. If I was arguing Hardy's behalf, I would definitely question how someone who wasn't even present for the appeal hearing could come up with a 10 game suspension.