Roger Goodell could have earned his $44 mil per year salary a few years ago by compromising or finessing a controversy, but now, it is too late

Photo: Yahoo Sports

… it is called losing your credibility

When Colin Kaepernick decided to call attention to the problems that unarmed black men were having in being killed by white cops, I did not object to his premise. 

I did, however, object to the process that he wanted to use because it injected the American flag into it. Then, those politicians who wear the flag in the lapel while concomitantly taking away the liberties of those whom they dislike to express outrage — and ignore the problem. 

Blacks make up between 70 to 75 percent of the athletes in the National Football League, and the league should have tried to understand what the basic animus of the players was. 

Instead, the controversy allowed a president who had avoided serving in Vietnam because of alleged bone spurs to wrap himself in the flag while trying to destroy the league itself — because they had blackballed him in the 1980s. 

In short, the basic problem of black men being killed by white police officers was thrown to the side and instead of Goodell trying to compromise with the players — maybe ask everyone to take a knee after the anthem for a prayer for those who have been killed by police officers, he ignored the problem. 

Enter George Floyd and the Minneapolis murder

Now, after a video of a murder of an unarmed black man by a Minneapolis policeman surfaced, something that was missing in the other killings, a nationwide outrage spread from the midwest throughout the country with the majority of the protestors being white, Goodell has been backed into a corner. 

Players released an embarrassing video calling out the league and Goodell and the owners for remaining quiet during the controversy. 

That force the NFL commissioner to release a statement that seemed somewhat lame and very, very late,

“We, the NFL, condemn racism and the systematic oppression of Black people. We, the NFL, admit we were wrong for not listening to NFL players earlier and encourage all to speak out and peacefully protest … We, the NFL, believe Black lives matter.”

Right. It took him a week to release this statement? Very sincere. 

He realizes that the NFL needs everyone in the country to support it this fall since the coronavirus may hit a second wave at that time. The season ticket sales are apparently lacking right now as many people find themselves out of work and unable to pay for them. Others are concerned about the spread of the disease in a stadium. 

The players forced the issue,

Several NFL players have released a powerful video titled "Stronger Together" that calls on the league to condemn racism and support black players.

Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson was joined in the video, released Thursday night, by other football stars including Odell Beckham Jr., Patrick Mahomes, Michael Thomas, DeAndre Hopkins, Tyrann Mathieu, Ezekiel Elliott and Saquon Barkley.

In the video, they asked the NFL to issue a statement condemning racism and police brutality following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

"How many times do we need to ask you to listen to your players?" Tyrann Mathieu asked.

Fairh Karimi, “NFL players release video calling on the league to 
condemn racism and support black players,” CNN, June 5, 2020

Goodell could have provided leadership three years ago

If Goodell had sat down with black leaders throughout the league a few years ago, he might have been able to work out an agreement that would have alleviated the controversy. 

Now, he has no credibility, and he is at the mercy of the players. 

Prior to the announcement, NFL star players from several teams came together and urged the football league to take a serious stance against racism and systematic injustice in the wake of Floyd’s death.

Carla Herreria Russo, “Roger Goodell Admits NFL Was Wrong 
About Player Protests,” Huffington Post, June 4, 2020

As that story notes, the NFL strongly opposed the practice of taking a knee, and now, it has reversed course, making it look hypocritical,

The NFL has resisted players’ efforts to peacefully protest racism and police brutality ever since Kaepernick began kneeling during the anthem in 2016.

More players joined the protest, but the league attempted to put an end to them by banning any form of kneeling during the national anthem in 2018.

Carla Herreria Russo, Huffington Post, June 4, 2020

Now, they have a trickier wicket to tread through this time. 

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