Goodell Talks Investigations, Relocations

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell spent his Friday afternoon defending himself following a season that began in controversy (a string of domestic violence cases) and appears destined to end the same way. Goodell spoke in advance of Super Bowl XLIX, a game where one of the teams is currently being investigated for a possible rules violation (“Deflate Gate”) in the previous round.

“We take seriously anything that potentially impacts the integrity of the game,” Goodell said. “We are focusing principally on two questions: why were some footballs used in the game that were not in compliance with the rules, and was this the result of deliberate action? I want to emphasize we have made no judgements on these points, and we will not compromise the investigation by engaging in speculation.”

Goodell openly acknowledged his close friendship with Patriots owner Robert Kraft and insisted it is part of his job to work closely with all the owners. He came under scrutiny from several people, including Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman, for spending the night before the AFC Championship Game at Kraft’s house. According to Sherman and others, that prevents Goodell from being an impartial judge in this investigation.

This is a familiar complaint for Goodell, who throughout his stint as commissioner has insisted on acting as judge, jury and executioner in most matters. It is a criticism that has been drizzled across his legacy for quite sometime; only this year, that drizzle turned into a downpour.

“It’s been a tough year on me personally,” Goodell said. “It’s been a year of what I would say is humility and learning. We, obviously as an organization, have gone through adversity. More importantly, it’s been adversity for me. We take that seriously. It’s an opportunity for us to get better. It’s an opportunity for us, for our organization, to get better. We’ve all done a lot of soul searching, starting with yours truly. We have taken action.”

Goodell also fielded questions on less controversial topics, including the possibility of the Los Angeles football drought potentially coming to an end. This topic has been boiling since earlier this month when Rams owner Stan Kroenke announced plans to build an 80,000-seat stadium on a plot of land he owns in Los Angeles.

Kroenke’s announcement has many penciling the Rams into Los Angeles as early as 2016. Some experts (myself included) believe the Chargers will follow them.

“There are teams that are interested, but are trying to work their issues out locally,” Goodell said. “As a league, we haven’t gotten to that stage yet, and it will all be subject to our relocation policy.”

On other points, Goodell said the league is still evaluating making changes to the extra point, either by making it a longer kick or narrowing the uprights (or both). Also, he says the league hopes to return soon to Mexico City, where a regular season game has not been played since 2005. He wants to continue to grow the fan base in Mexico, but those efforts have been stalled because the primary focus has been on London over the last few years.

Manning Still Undecided on Return

Peyton Manning spoke on Friday at the Bart Starr Award banquet and said he still needs more time before deciding whether to return for the 2015 season.

Manning still needs to sit down with John Elway and discuss the direction of the team and his role therein. He plans for this to happen sooner than later, as he does not want his uncertain status to become a distraction.

“I don’t see this thing lingering,” he said. “I’m not into anything dramatic.”

Manning has already met with new head coach Gary Kubiak and is confident he could function just fine in his offense. Manning and Kubiak were not able to discuss football, due to a restriction in the CBA, but they were able to start the general process of getting to know one another.

Manning says he has no concerns about passing his yearly physical on March 9, which would activate his $19 million salary for the upcoming season. That was once thought to be a concern after a quad injury slowed him down the stretch last season and kept him from participating in the Pro Bowl, the first time in his career he’s missed an All-Star game due to injury.

He also added that the playoff loss to the Colts will not impact his decision one way or the other. That may be hard to believe, given that he was a lock to return in 2015 until the Broncos were shocked at home in their playoff opener.

Annual Selection Meeting Today

The Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee meets today to determine the members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2015.

The Committee will first vote on senior finalist Mick Tingelhoff, then determine the fate of contributor finalists Bill Polian and Ron Wolf. After the the real drama begins, as the Committee begins to pare down the list of 15 modern-era player and coach finalists.

The Committee will first trim the list from 15 to 10, then half that list before conducting final voting. The five finalists must receive “yes” votes from at least 80 percent of the Committee to gain induction.

The one first-time nominee who seems like a lock is the late Junior Seau, who was one of the most dominant defenders of the 90’s and the driving force behind San Diego’s only Super Bowl team. The other first-timer with good odds for election is Kurt Warner, whose remarkably resilient career included three Super Bowl appearances and one ring.

This Committee will also try to start addressing its backlog at receiver. Marvin Harrison, in his second season of eligibility, is certainly deserving. But he may have to wait on Tim Brown, who is somehow still waiting in his sixth year of eligibility.

Finally, keep an eye on Rams OT Orlando Pace. If Walter Jones can get inducted in his first year of eligibility, Pace has a chance to do the same.

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