Roger Goodell attempted to do a little damage control overseas this weekend. It didn’t exactly go well.
The NFL commissioner paid a visit to London to take in the Los Angeles Rams’ matchup with the New York Giants but couldn’t escape the Giants’ major off-field storyline: the saga of kicker Josh Brown, whose repeated abuse of his ex-wife recently was made public in a series of disturbing documents.
Brown reportedly was placed on the commissioner’s exempt list and didn’t travel with the Giants to London, but the only official punishment he has received from the league was a one-game suspension to start the season. Goodell’s excuse: The NFL didn’t have get all the “facts” about Brown’s domestic abuse.
“We have asked repeatedly for those facts and the information that’s been gathered by law enforcement both orally and in writing,” Goodell said in an interview with BBC Sport’s Richard Conway, via Conway’s Facebook page. “And we weren’t able to get access to it. So, you have to make decisions on whatever information you have.”
But that wasn’t even the worst part of Goodell’s interview. Conway asked the commissioner to address criticism from fans who wonder how NFL players can be punished for excessive celebrations, but an admitted domestic abuser like Brown only serves a one-game suspension.
“I understand the public’s misunderstanding of those things and how that can be difficult for them to understand how we get to those positions,” Goodell responded. “But those are things that we have to do. I think it’s a lot deeper and a lot more complicated than it appears but it gets a lot of focus.”
In short: Goodell believes it’s the fans, not the NFL, who don’t get it when it comes to punishments of players.
Essentially calling your fans stupid isn’t best stance to take considering the league’s repeated mishandling of disciplinary cases, from Ray Rice to Deflategate to Brown. Then again, we pretty much should expect this kind of tone-deaf response from Goodell at this point.
Thumbnail photo via Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports Images
