Has Goodell effectively fired himself?

patsfan06 · May 11, 2015

Make no mistake about it, Robert Kraft is a powerful owner and he has power allies among owners.

But there is also a fraction of owners who are jealous of him and his teams success (think Woody Johnson) and that will hurt them in this situation.

Ironically, with this one act the support for Roger Goodell may have went from the small by powerful owners lead by the Mara's, Kraft, Arthur Blank, Bob McNair and Clark Hunt among others to the likes of Woody Johnson, Jerry Richardson and a bunch of the small market teams.

flasox27 · May 11, 2015

One of the great myths is that Kraft has any influence over on field league matters. This just proves it. If he tried to get Goodell fired he would have one vote for it. Goodell and 31 owners are just laughing at him as his teams gets screwed for nothing . All the time he was supporting him, Goodell was just sharpening his knife to eviscerate him. What a pathetic judge of character Kraft turned out to be and we are paying the price.

Bobsyouruncle · May 11, 2015

No, the politics of jealousy pays, always has, always will.

scott99 · May 11, 2015

BelichickFan said:
To those who think this strengthens Goodell, that will change when TB12 starts crushing them in court.

I have ZERO faith Brady will see justice in any way, shape or form. He is the fall guy, and Kraft with his weak comment, won't be helping Brady in any way. He means he supports Brady once the suspension is up.

Kraft is a ****y, and Goodell's job is more secure because of this.

#56300ex · May 11, 2015

I'm not so sure the other owners are pleased about this. I'm sure there are exceptions but I would be concerned seeing the World Champs get nailed for something with only "more probable than not"
Pretty sure they wouldn't want to fork out a million bucks and 2 draft picks because of "general knowledge"

scott99 · May 11, 2015

I just hope Kraft doesn't go to any upcoming league meetings.

Deus Irae · May 11, 2015

old 55 said:
I think so. Kraft was his powerful ally. Now he has smeared the integrity of his golden child & perpetuated the myth that the Pats are always cheating. That diminishes his brand. If you were Kraft, wouldn't you go scorched earth until Roger is just a bad memory?

If I were Kraft, Goodell wouldn't have survived Cameraplacementgate. Until he shows us otherwise, we might as well think of Kraft as what he's always been: happy to ride the train being driven by a true believing crusader for needless 'justice'.

Rob0729 · May 11, 2015

I just started another thread where Peter King polled three team executives about the punishment and two of the three seem upset and feel the punishment is way over the top.

A quick poll of three officials of other clubs in the hours after the ruling found a mixed reaction. One top club official thought the penalty was excessive because there was no definitive proof in the Wells report that Brady either authorized the deflation of footballs or knew precisely that they had been deflated. Another said he was heartened to see the league treat the Patriots with an iron fist, though Kraft has been a close confidant of Goodell. A third said he and others in his organization were surprised by the severity of the punishment. “Way over the top,” he said. “Draconian. I thought the league went too far.” There was a no-joy-in-Mudville tone with these officials. Two of them said virtually the same thing—that this was a sad day for football.

http://mmqb.si.com/2015/05/11/tom-brady-suspension-patriots-deflategate-punishment/

YOUGOTMOSSED · May 11, 2015

If Goodell can't be taken care of one way or another (I'm fantasizing about him taking a wrong turn down an alley and being cornered by a crazed Boston Irish townie with a broken bottle in his hand), I'd really would like Belichick to get a job with a college team where he could coach in a league that isn't bending over backwards to screw him.

I could say **** you to the NFL for good and still watch football in the fall.

YOUGOTMOSSED · May 11, 2015

patsfan06 said:
Make no mistake about it, Robert Kraft is a powerful owner and he has power allies among owners.

But there is also a fraction of owners who are jealous of him and his teams success (think Woody Johnson) and that will hurt them in this situation.

Ironically, with this one act the support for Roger Goodell may have went from the small by powerful owners lead by the Mara's, Kraft, Arthur Blank, Bob McNair and Clark Hunt among others to the likes of Woody Johnson, Jerry Richardson and a bunch of the small market teams.

That's what I keep hearing but I see little to no evidence of Kraft having even enough leverage to keep his team from getting screwed over. If he has any power, I'd say now is the f*cking time to use it since we clearly have an unhinged, maniac NY fan calling the shots in the NFL.

RDS11 · May 11, 2015

Most owners bought their team while the NFL was already America's #1 sport, and they paid a huge price for it, and as such, I don't think these owners have the same attitude toward the league, that the league should come first, as the Lamar Hunt, Ralph Wilson, George Halas used to do.

I think Kraft is about to realize that he might be the only one left, the last one who put the league first before his own interest, and that he has not much support among other owners. He might be feeling silly now to have taken the spygate penalty 'to protect the shield', and then initiate the resolution of the last union agreement while his wife was dying, knowing now that not one of the other owner is feeling the same way toward the league and that they are just in it for themselves.

ATippett56 · May 11, 2015

Is Goodell in a bunker with Russian salvos dropping nearby?

old 55 · May 11, 2015

I think Kraft should pull back his efforts on NFL committees that benefit the good of the league and focus on protecting his own team's interests. If that doesn't include fighting Goodell at every tune, he is foolish.

JMarr · May 11, 2015

old 55 said:
I think so. Kraft was his powerful ally. Now he has smeared the integrity of his golden child & perpetuated the myth that the Pats are always cheating. That diminishes his brand. If you were Kraft, wouldn't you go scorched earth until Roger is just a bad memory?

It doesn't diminish the brand. It reinforces the national narrative and made makes the Pats (perpetual winners) the villains. Like spygate, this is another bonanza (and fan growth opportunity) for the NFL.

It's all about compelling storylines--even if they are false--much like in Hollywood. Not too hard to figure it out, except for the part when one, like me, one finally figures out that--DUH--it was simply about the money all along. Like almost everthing else.

obgod3 · May 11, 2015

well what is actually the process to remove Goodell? Is he under a contract that make it difficult? I think most owners are not happy with the recent actions of Goodell this included, you have to factor that every game can now be a factor with asking for the balls to be measured at anytime. This isnt good for the league, the QB's as a whole and most owners that have half a brain know it,

Canuck · May 12, 2015

Kraft is a member of the NFL's compensation committee. I hope he votes to give Goodell 1 dollar as compensation and makes it known to the Public.

TheFlyingWedge · May 12, 2015

ensoul said:
This is Goodells finest moment and he has never looked better in the eyes of the nation or the owners. Maybe Kraft is upset with him but there are 31 other owners who love this guy.

Plus when push comes to shove don't kid yourselves: Kraft will back Goodell 100/100 times.

I wouldn't overestimate Goodell's popularity. Less than a month ago during the draft, the audience was openly boo'ing him every time the man opened his mouth or even walked to the podium - and it looked pretty mean-spirited, not just playful boo'ing.

What disgusts me most is that Goodell is most likely doing this in an effort to boost his "deflating" popularity, as if his excessively harsh punishment might please the Patriot-hating rabble and earn some brownie points with a few of the owners. It perfectly illustrates why he is unfit as commissioner of the NFL.

yukon cornelius · May 12, 2015

Goodell's real problem here is he is about to stick a finger in the hornet's nest that is the NFLPA - this may well be the last straw for them. Brady was punished for essentially following the CBA (not turning over his phone) and was suspended for 4 games without evidence.

Yee & the NFLPA are going to hammer the Wells report mercilessly, and the mistrust that Goodell has garnered over uneven handling of fines, player safety, etc are going to come to a head.

The owners are relatively smart. They need the players to have a brand. Yes, the players need the owners, too.....but there has to be some level of trust. Once the Wells sham is exposed, the incompetence & the vindictive nature of the league is out in court, any modicum of trust will be gone. This will be Goodell's swan song.

Haley · May 12, 2015

yukon cornelius said:
Goodell's real problem here is he is about to stick a finger in the hornet's nest that is the NFLPA - this may well be the last straw for them. Brady was punished for essentially following the CBA (not turning over his phone) and was suspended for 4 games without evidence.

Yee & the NFLPA are going to hammer the Wells report mercilessly, and the mistrust that Goodell has garnered over uneven handling of fines, player safety, etc are going to come to a head.

The owners are relatively smart. They need the players to have a brand. Yes, the players need the owners, too.....but there has to be some level of trust. Once the Wells sham is exposed, the incompetence & the vindictive nature of the league is out in court, any modicum of trust will be gone. This will be Goodell's swan song.

I really hope you are right on this. I also hope that Brady can win a defamation suit although I think that will be a steep slope since often that is very hard to prove when you are already a public figure. I'm skeptical that the Wells sham will ever truly be exposed just because the lie is so much more appealing to so many people. I really hope there is justice in this somewhere.

reflexblue · May 12, 2015

TheFlyingWedge said:
I wouldn't overestimate Goodell's popularity. Less than a month ago during the draft, the audience was openly boo'ing him every time the man opened his mouth or even walked to the podium - and it looked pretty mean-spirited, not just playful boo'ing.

What disgusts me most is that Goodell is most likely doing this in an effort to boost his "deflating" popularity, as if his excessively harsh punishment might please the Patriot-hating rabble and earn some brownie points with a few of the owners. It perfectly illustrates why he is unfit as commissioner of the NFL.

I read yesterday that goodell was despised by the owners (pre-ommish days) and it was kraft who convinced the owners to hire him, so it wouldn't take much for goody to lose his popularity. I also read that one owner was worried that kraft would leave the committee that deals with tv contracts, the thursday night (nbc) contract is up next year and kraft has been one of if not the most important negotiators the nfl has. Hes made the other owners rich with his dealing with tv contracts.

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