Jonathan Vilma suing Roger Goodell for defamation

[pherein]

Good?

Vilma is going to crash and burn in this case and further taint his name.

No one needs to stand up to Goodell at all.

Yes, they do. Or he and the NFL can say what they want and do what they want without proving a thing. You want that?

You want judge, jury , and conviction in one man, with no appeal?

Sense Goodell has been commissioner what have we seen. His spygate, henderson, vick, saints, etc. blah blah blah. it never ends if you notice. Every damn week its something non football. He's a glory CEO hound, I work with them. Someone needs to take him down a notch.

I don't know what vilma did or didn't do, unlike most psychic's here, but if he can knock Goodell in the teeth, Im all for it.

 

[nashvillepatsfan]

Yes, they do. Or he and the NFL can say what they want and do what they want without proving a thing. You want that?

You want judge, jury , and conviction in one man, with no appeal?

Sense Goodell has been commissioner what have we seen. His spygate, henderson, vick, saints, etc. blah blah blah. it never ends if you notice. Every damn week its something non football. He's a glory CEO hound, I work with them. Someone needs to take him down a notch.

I don't know what vilma did or didn't do, unlike most psychic's here, but if he can knock Goodell in the teeth, Im all for it.

uh oh Pherein, you're sounding as mad as we sounded after sh*tgate. The commish sure has a way of ticking off football fans. Thats probably not a good thing

 

[PatsFanSince74]

Hold on Sparky. Goodell has a BA in economics but not a JD and as far as I know, never attended law school. He may have a stable of lawyers in his employ but he is not one himself. As a result, he may have a very good knowledge of the law, slander, libel, defamation, New York Times malice et al... but his background is PR, not law.

Big oops on my part. I thought he was the General Counsel to the League. Thanks for correcting me.

I still think he's too smart to slander, libel or defame someone, but I stand corrected on the facts.

 

[PatsFanSince74]

Uh...Roger Goodell is NOT A LAWYER...for the 10,000th time...he got his degree in economics..that is IT...this canard has been posted and reposted on threads here all month.

Roger Goodell is NOT a lawyer...in fact a cursory search will reveal quotes from Goodell that he cannot STAND lawyers...that is quite a stretch apart form declaring "Roger Goodell is a lawyer" to open a post.

HERE is a letter from a law school graduate TO Goodell asking him pointedly WHY he seems to HATE LAWYERS...

Letter to Roger Goodell from a Law Student and Sports Fan*|*Sports Fans Coalition

If anyone does not believe me, just call the ProJo or Herald sports departments RIGHT NOW and ask THEM if Roger Goodell is a lawyer...he is NOT...and no matter how many idiots from Minnesota and Detroit keep referring to him as such, it still does not change this FACT...HE IS NOT A LAWYER

See my answer immediately above to PFP. I still think he's too smart to have exposed himself to this kind of charge, but I was 100% wrong on the facts.

 

[Deus Irae]

Yes, they do. Or he and the NFL can say what they want and do what they want without proving a thing. You want that?

You want judge, jury , and conviction in one man, with no appeal?

Sense Goodell has been commissioner what have we seen. His spygate, henderson, vick, saints, etc. blah blah blah. it never ends if you notice. Every damn week its something non football. He's a glory CEO hound, I work with them. Someone needs to take him down a notch.

I don't know what vilma did or didn't do, unlike most psychic's here, but if he can knock Goodell in the teeth, Im all for it.

1.) There are confessions.

2.) This is the NFL, not a court of law. The players are getting the 'justice' they bargained for. While I was ranting about how the CBA needed to change the penalty/accusation structure in the NFL, the players were ignoring that part of the deal. I despise Goodell as a commissioner, but it's not his fault that the players were idiots.

 

[Pujo]

You're also right, Deus Irae, the players agreed to a CBA where Goodell kept all of the disciplinary powers. But as a fan and not a party to the CBA, I still only want to see Goodell act where justified. Maybe he did in this case, I honestly don't know, but I wouldn't turn down an opportunity to see the evidence, which a lawsuit could accomplish.

 

[Rusty Coupe]

Vilma v. Goodell is more than just a defamation lawsuit. It is a direct challenge to a commissioner who, until now, has acted with more power than any commissioner in U.S. sports history. It is also an attempt to import judicial review of an individual who, until now, has been judge, jury and executioner of NFL justice.

the league may have to divulge it's sources of information, including the identities of players and coaches who were informants. The backlash of such disclosures could be considerable. Moreover, much like the Mitchell Report has been criticized for relying on disreputable persons, expect similar critiques if the same proves true of the NFL's Bounty Report.

Jonathan Vilma v. Roger Goodell is more than just a defamation lawsuit - Michael McCann - SI.com

As a fan of the Patriots, I think what Vilma is doing is in the best interests of the NFL, 'absolute power corrupts absolutely'.

 

[Ron Sellers]

Vilma should instead be upset with the Saints and the NFLPA.

After what happened to the Patriots in 2007, the Saints have no excuse for ignoring warnings from the NFL in regards to the bounties.

The NFLPA negotiated with the league over the current CBA for what, about two years? It is not as if this the question on how disciplinary action is handled was never brought up previously. The NFLPA's leadership as well as all their players knew full well that Goodell had full power to decide what penalties would be handled out. That was the perfect opportunity for them to change that, but they chose not to.

I was completely baffled at the time of the ratification of the new CBA that nobody on the player's side brought this up. Although it may not be 'right', Vilma and the rest of the players have nobody but themselves to blame for the current discipline and penalty situation. My guess is that they chose the biggest slice of the revenue pie they could get over a better arbitrary and appeal process; if that is true then it's a bit disingenuous to complain about it now.

 

[Ron Sellers]

Regarding some of the other comments about Goodell's background.

Yes, Goodell is not a lawyer.

But what he does have at his disposal is a group of lawyers who are extremely well versed in what they do, and I can almost guarantee you that they look over every pertinent decision (especially this one) with a very fine tooth comb before the league (Goodell) comes to a decision.

I am sure the league is extremely confident that the decision that they made is perfectly legal.


One last thing to consider: does an athlete being suspended really hurt his future earning potential? I know it was a long time ago, but a one-year suspension didn't seem to hurt the post-NFL career of Alex Karras, and it didn't seem to negatively impact his NFL career either (he played for seven more years).

 

[Jackson 2]

In order to win his case, Vilma must prove that the Commissioner intentionally tried to damage his repuatation without cause. Not happening. Vilma is grasping at straws, as much as I'd like to see Goodell get his.

 

[Rusty Coupe]

In order to win his case, Vilma must prove that the Commissioner intentionally tried to damage his repuatation without cause. Not happening. Vilma is grasping at straws, as much as I'd like to see Goodell get his.

I think Vilma's case is more about forcing Goodell to show what actual evidence he has, and where he got it, than winning or losing.

 

[BradyFTW!]

I think Vilma's case is more about forcing Goodell to show what actual evidence he has, and where he got it, than winning or losing.

Exactly. We're all Pats fans, so we know how public perception works. Five years later, most opposing fans still believe that the Patriots taping of defensive signals somehow enabled our defense to know what plays the other team was calling, and that we were somehow gaining a unique competitive advantage, and even that we taped the Rams' pre-Super Bowl walkthrough.

If you don't challenge false assertions, they become truth in the eyes of most people. Therefore, I like that Vilma is challenging Goodell's assertions. I barely care what the end result is, provided that the truth is put out there for everyone to see and discuss.

 

[Joker]

I think Vilma's case is more about forcing Goodell to show what actual evidence he has, and where he got it, than winning or losing.

I never questioned the ability of the NFL employed lawyers,and I'm sure they have put together a very strong argument against ....now THIS is something I dearly want to see....Goodell, not the lawyers surrounding him, Goodell himself...in the direct line of fire....to make an analogy,I want to see him do his Colonel Jessup act....I want to see him reveal his inner arrogance...I want him to feel the brunt of a withering media firestorm IF/WHEN he shows his inner dumb jock/bully self.

I know a certain contingent of Pats fans side with everything/anything the Lord High Omissioner does or says....I suggest they are suffering from Stockholm Syndrome. He's the giant ogre,the bully with a rod of correction that has brought some fans to their knees in acquiescence..."Roger is a benevolent dictator!!!! Long Live King Goodell!!".

Meanwhile, in REAL life, NOBODY in their right mind bows down to some omnipotent clownboy bully just because he runs the business that they prefer to patronize.They voice their displeasure and wait for the inevitable deposement of the megalomaniacal mistake.

 

[Joker]

If you don't challenge false assertions, they become truth in the eyes of most people. Therefore, I like that Vilma is challenging Goodell's assertions. I barely care what the end result is, provided that the truth is put out there for everyone to see and discuss.

Nail meet hammer...and let me add this....the LIE that Goodell is a lawyer that has been printed as FACT by sports bloggers and writers from coast to coast has NOT been addressed by Goodell....not once....is anyone trying to say he does NOT know that this TOTAL FABRICATION is being published in and spoken on media outlets everywhere??? What kind of person allows a total LIE to be spread unchallenged when HE knows it is totally FALSE???

Is THAT a person you "look up to!"? Is that doing "a fine job!!!"? Is that "good for the league!!"?...please...it's like somebody cloned an army of Patricia Hearsts and inducted them into Symbiogoodellanese Liberation Army.

 

[LivinLovin&Breathin_Brady]

Vilma is an idiot. I'm sure Goodell has more than enough proof - like emails and statements from sources among the Saints to put out these suspensions. I thought Goodell was showing a little love for the Saints by not suspending the whole defense for the season. I'm sure there's a lot of stuff about Bountygate that has not been revealed to the public, to further protect the image of the NFL and hurricane-stricken team of NO. With Vilma taking this to court, I'm sure a whole lot more mess is gonna come out of this.

 

[Joker]

With Vilma taking this to court, I'm sure a whole lot more mess is gonna come out of this.

Yeah...Vilma should keep his mouth shut and just unilaterally take his punishment...like the Patriots and Bill Belichick did...that way he'll avoid a HUGE MESS just like the Patriots did..

oh...WAIT.....huh???????????????????????????????????????????????????????

 

[Jackson 2]

I think Vilma's case is more about forcing Goodell to show what actual evidence he has, and where he got it, than winning or losing.

I actually agree with you and I think Vilma deserves to see it.

 

[Pujo]

Nail meet hammer...and let me add this....the LIE that Goodell is a lawyer that has been printed as FACT by sports bloggers and writers from coast to coast has NOT been addressed by Goodell....not once....is anyone trying to say he does NOT know that this TOTAL FABRICATION is being published in and spoken on media outlets everywhere??? What kind of person allows a total LIE to be spread unchallenged when HE knows it is totally FALSE???

This goes against my policy of not replying to posts with random words in ALL-CAPS, but I don't get this particular knock on Goodell. The man is the commissioner of a huge, multi-billion dollar enterprise, why should he bother responding to sports blogs? Maybe he should go on messageboards and reply to posts about him, too? Blog writers can check their sources or else they can write crap, it's all on them.

 

[Joker]

sports writers for newspapers and electronic outlets who also write daily blogs for their employers are now, somehow, not relevant?

what exactly would a relevant news source be.,..one that you would have Goodell respond to....60 minutes?....ABC World New Tonight?..National Enquirer?

and where did I write that Goodell should respond to message boards? Did you misinterpret "writers" to mean "message board writers"? I have read sports writers for major metropolitan newspapers print that Goodell is a lawyer numerous times in the past months and have run across quotes of their printed columns on football boards from coast to coast.

Caps seems to infuriate you...perhaps Google would be less vexing.

 

[Pujo]

sports writers for newspapers and electronic outlets who also write daily blogs for their employers are now, somehow, not relevant?

what exactly would a relevant news source be.,..one that you would have Goodell respond to....60 minutes?....ABC World New Tonight?..National Enquirer?

If a Peter King wrote it, he'd probably get a note from someone in the NFL's PR department (though still not Goodell himself) so he'd have an opportunity to correct it himself in a future column. Goodell's background is out there, he's not trying to make anyone think he's an attorney. He does have many attorneys working for him, but we all know that neither being a lawyer nor hiring one exempts one from doing something stupid or illegal.