Should Goodell take control and responsibility for Player Conduct?

[Gronkandez]

It's clear the current system isn't working. He's just sitting there in his little bubble coming down on every one like a little Napoleon.

Well, why aren't the League Offices in charge? It's their "Shield" that's being tarnished right now. Shouldn't they investigate guys and determine who can and can't play in the league? If it's left up to the owners there is a clear conflict of interest.

I'm sure there are plenty holes in this approach but I figured I'd throw it out there. Something has to change and it needs to happen fast.

 

[jmt57]

If it's left up to the owners there is a clear conflict of interest.

That's why the current system for discipline and personal conduct policy is in place, leaving it up to Goodell and the NFL league office to enforce.



What changes are you suggesting be made?

 

[SB39]

It's clear the current system isn't working. He's just sitting there in his little bubble coming down on every one like a little Napoleon.

Well, why aren't the League Offices in charge? It's their "Shield" that's being tarnished right now. Shouldn't they investigate guys and determine who can and can't play in the league? If it's left up to the owners there is a clear conflict of interest.

I'm sure there are plenty holes in this approach but I figured I'd throw it out there. Something has to change and it needs to happen fast.

The problem is that he is not, as you say, a "little Napoleon." His punishments need to conform to certain standards agreed upon in the CBA and with the NFLPA, not to mention fit within the framework of the laws of the United States.

Your suggestions that the league determines who can and can't play is laughable. The league has no right whatsoever - either legally or morally - to exclude a certain player because that player has a checkered history.

 

[chasa]

players do something wrong

goodell tries to suspend them

players complain to D.Smith

D.Smith appeals and throws the biggest ******* public hissyfits anybody has ever seen

Goodell stands firm on punishment

Players start lawsuit vs the nfl

Goodell is forced to not punish people

Thats the state of the NFL at the moment, its not goodells fault, its the NFLPA being seemingly above the law when it comes to handling goodell, and thinking that means the ACTUAL law wont do ****.

Thus players are getting arressted all over the place.

**** a 49's player just based in another 49ers head with a beer bottle, and the player who needed to get stitches in his head is like "no nooooo, i changed my mind i dont want to press charges, because having this insane person who could have killed me on my team gives me a better chance of winning" And goodell is going to be able to do jack **** because of it.

Goodell is stuck in an Obama'd state of mind. He'd like to be able to do something, but the republicans(NFLPA for the nfl's case) keep shutting him down with fillibusters and no votes.

 

[RayClay]

Maybe some sort of microchip implanted in high school.

 

[Deus Irae]

Murder is against the law, and is punishable by life imprisonment and, sometimes, death. That isn't enough to stop people from committing murder.

What Goodell needs to do is realize that it's not his job to police the players. He doesn't need to be getting more involved in this stuff. He needs to be getting less involved in this stuff. If a player breaks the law, that's for the police to handle. Leagues need to stick to league business.

 

[Gronkandez]

Your suggestions that the league determines who can and can't play is laughable. The league has no right whatsoever - either legally or morally - to exclude a certain player because that player has a checkered history.

So if hypothetically a player is a suspect in a couple of murders during college, people stop talking out of the blue, and the guy ends up getting arrested for obstruction of justice in both cases the league can't suspend the guy or anything like that when he gets into the league? I know they can't really do anything about more minor arrests but I would think if it's murder that would be different.

 

[RobertWeathers]

If a person commits a crime, he/she is punished/goes to jail, etc.

If an NFL player commits a crime, he is punished/goes to jail, fined, suspended, released, loses money, publicly humiliated and banned from the league.

Not sure Goody can do anymore than he already is- which seems harsh but compared to the crime is nothing. Quite frankly, if you want to commit a crime you are better off not going to the NFL.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Murder is against the law, and is punishable by life imprisonment and, sometimes, death. That isn't enough to stop people from committing murder.

What Goodell needs to do is realize that it's not his job to police the players. He doesn't need to be getting more involved in this stuff. He needs to be getting less involved in this stuff. If a player breaks the law, that's for the police to handle. Leagues need to stick to league business.

Yes
For some reason many in our society take every incident already covered by law and feel compelled to layer many additional new laws and restrictions over the existing law. Then they're confounded that it does not solve the "problem". So they do it again. Sigh.

 

[Tunescribe]

Here's all you need to know about that:

 

[SB39]

So if hypothetically a player is a suspect in a couple of murders during college, people stop talking out of the blue, and the guy ends up getting arrested for obstruction of justice in both cases the league can't suspend the guy or anything like that when he gets into the league? I know they can't really do anything about more minor arrests but I would think if it's murder that would be different.

You have to be more specific regarding your hypothetical but if a guy is accused of a crime in college, found not guilty of that crime (or the charges are dropped), then gets arrested for a lesser crime, but pays his debt to society, then no, there's nothing the league can do to permanently keep him out of the league if some owner wants to take a chance on him.

I know they can suspend someone for being accused of a crime or being arrested, but how can you permanently (key word: permanently) ban someone based on the suspicion that they may have done something?

 

[fnordcircle]

The 'NFL is full of thugs' hysteria needs to die down. Again.

Arrest rates for the NFL are lower than the rest of the country. The math is pretty easy to do - I did it myself for 2010 but there are other stories detailing 2009, etc.

Hernandez just brought all of this to the limelight so every other arrest/fight/incident is getting magnified now so the media can continue to write stories about how the NFL is nothing but felons so you can read it and get upset and they can sell ad space.

 

[DarrylS]

The 'NFL is full of thugs' hysteria needs to die down. Again.

Arrest rates for the NFL are lower than the rest of the country. The math is pretty easy to do - I did it myself for 2010 but there are other stories detailing 2009, etc.

Hernandez just brought all of this to the limelight so every other arrest/fight/incident is getting magnified now so the media can continue to write stories about how the NFL is nothing but felons so you can read it and get upset and they can sell ad space.

I wonder if this stuff happened in September it would get as much play, but as it occurred in the NFL Doldrums it seems to be magnified...

Seems as though a lot of writers are coming out of the woodwork to justify their existence...

 

[IllegalContact]

I don't know how any policy would have prevented what happened given that hernandez had not been caught doing anything as a pro up until this.

the way this one worked out, he wasn't even needed.........it took care of itself.

 

[fnordcircle]

I just feel that Goodell wasn't clear enough on the rules about not shooting other human beings. The ambiguity about whether or not ending someone's life is wrong is going to leave any rookie confused.

The NFL just needs to come out and say 'Rape is wrong, Assault is wrong, Murder is wrong' and until they do I think they are responsible for everything that has happened.

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

Personally I feel that that is being too judgmental of others' conduct

 

[Tunescribe]

Really, it all comes down to whether Roger "likes" you.

Roger likes:
* Jets
* Ravens
* Ray Lewis
* John Harbaugh
* Colts
* Peyton Manning
* Jeff Fisher
* England
* Bankers/financiers

Roger does NOT like:
* Patriots
* Saints
* Bill Belichick
* Sean Payton
* Teams that regularly win their division
* Contact sports/games that are rough

 

[jmt57]

So if hypothetically a player is a suspect in a couple of murders during college, people stop talking out of the blue, and the guy ends up getting arrested for obstruction of justice in both cases the league can't suspend the guy or anything like that when he gets into the league? I know they can't really do anything about more minor arrests but I would think if it's murder that would be different.

Again I'm a bit unclear on what you would like for the league to do, but the way that reads to me is that what you want is if a player was a suspect, or was simply questioned in a major crime then he should be banned from ever playing in the NFL - presumably because that would therefore spare the NFL the embarrassment of ever having one of their players being accused of or committing a major crime - is that correct?

And at the same time that those players outlined above that have never been convicted of anything (but were suspects) are banned, others that do actually commit other crimes and are convicted of those crimes are allowed to play - is that correct?


Sorry, but that just doesn't make much sense to me. You end up with innocent people being penalized while at the same time there is probably virtually no additional benefit of fewer future incidents that you are attempting to avoid.



Right now there seems to be an avalanche of public opinion wanting to blame somebody for not having the foresight to have seen this coming. Why that assumption? $#!+ happens, that's life.

The only person to blame for this is AH himself, period.

 

[lurker1965]

1) Anything used to bash Goodell is good. You won't hear me complaining about it.

2)In the end he isn't really at fault. (Besides by that logic I'd hold Bob Kraft responsible for Hernandez despite being, you know, sane.)

Save this post though. I relish anything that kicks Goodell and will never mention #2 again.

 

[lurker1965]

...

Goodell is stuck in an Obama'd state of mind. He'd like to be able to do something, but the republicans(NFLPA for the nfl's case) keep shutting him down with fillibusters and no votes.

Dear moron. Politics is not used here.

That said, Democrat House. Democrat Senate. Democrat President with - in his first term - a majority so secure he could ignore opposition. Yet you with a straight face say the Republicans are the problem.

You might as well say the French, or Russians - they have had as much impact as the Republicans.

BTW, if one has nothing to hide he has nothing to fear. So why again is Snowden being hunted down?

Think I changed the subject at the end. I learned from you ATTEMPTING to make a lousy political point when the subject is supposedly how awful Goodell is.

If a mod removes both of these posts, I won't complain. Heck, I'll cheer.