NFL commissioner Roger Goodell talks a lot about maintaining the integrity of the game of football. It’s the reason he suspended Tom Brady and fined the Patriots a gajillion dollars. It’s why he made an example of the Saints by over-sanctioning them during Bountygate. It’s also why he suspended Ezekiel Elliot six games over accusations of a crime he was never prosecuted for.
Of course, that code is only used selectively.
Goodell is a walking contradiction when it comes to enforcing the laws of his league, and he is about as opaque a commissioner as there is in professional sports right now. Good luck getting him to answer a straightforward question about any decision he makes, especially if it’s controversial or of any consequence whatsoever.
He’s as slippery as a bar of soap covered in Vaseline.
However he’s also overseen a period of immense growth and profitability for the NFL, despite his constant failure to successfully execute the duties of a commissioner. Because his reign coincided with the boom of social media and the evolution of sports coverage, he’s given the benefit of the doubt that he knows what he’s doing.
According to ESPN, his salary since 2006 has topped $212 million, meaning that not only has he earned more than any player in the NFL in that time span, he’s also earned more than all but two athletes in all of North American major sports.
Do you know how hard it is for anyone with any job to make more than a star ballplayer for the New York Yankees? They are one of the richest teams in the history of organized sports and THEY DON’T HAVE A SALARY CAP.
Goodell was handed his job at the right time and was smart enough to align himself with the league’s most powerful owners – the commissioners behind the curtain. And he has been rewarded handsomely for it. What a time to be alive, eh?
