Not So Goodell?

With the NFL Lockout supposedly coming to an end, the buzz of football season is starting to return. In some ways, the lack of contact between teams and potential free agents has created even more speculation because rumors and information are simply not available.

My angle on this blog is to hash out some issues that have come to light as the labor agreement nears. Some would say that the James Harrison situation has thrown some gasoline on the fire for these issues. They'd be right. One thing that it also did was ensure that the Pittsburgh Steelers will have had the most tumultuous offseason (Harrison, Mendenhall’s comments, Hines Ward’s DUI, and losing the Super Bowl). I’m going to address Harrison’s situation specifically, as well as some points that he brings up in the article in question.

James Harrison

Use your head, dude… There’s a time and a place to voice your opinions. It’s one thing to criticize the commissioner. That kind of stuff happens all the time. Although his words were very heavy, this is nothing new. The more egregious part of Harrison’s comments were the criticism of his own quarterback, and the picture glamorizing firearms.

Harrison apparently "has his ticket" to the gun show. One of these is to mow down Goodell, and the other is to mow down his teammate.

I have no particular affinity towards Big Ben. In fact, I think he’s a scumbag as well. However, you don’t criticize your teammate, especially when he has 2 Super Bowl rings. He’s proven that he can be a clutch player (even though his first Super Bowl performance was subpar). Roethlisberger has led them to multiple 4^th quarter comebacks, and has proven to be a star quarterback in the league. For his part, Harrison has been a star too. But does Big Ben throw his D under the bus if they don’t stop someone? It will be interesting to see how Tomlin handles this fractured locker room.

Who would ever take shots at this guy? Ladies and gentleman, making its second appearance in the Vibe....The Big Ben piss drunk picture!

With regard to the picture of him holding guns….did we learn nothing from Gilbert Arenas? The league already is vigorously trying to shed its thuggish reputation, without having to deal with stuff like this. At no time did he think, “Hey, this probably is not such a good idea.” Since the Plaxico fiasco, the league has had firearms on its “stay away” list for players. I’m actually going to share a quote from PTI’s Michael Wilbon in response to seeing this picture. Wilbon rather astutely stated that “having guns doesn’t make you tough….it makes you dangerous”. When you consider that the intention was probably to make him look tough, this quote makes a lot of sense.

Player Conduct

"Do this research if we don't have a season — watch how much evil, which we call crime, watch how much crime picks up, if you take away our game,"

-Ray Lewis

Always listen to those who have been down the road before. Thanks to Kenny Britt and Cedric Benson, Lewis is proving to be a de facto prophet.

Aside from Hines Ward… Kenny Britt, Javarris James, Cedric Benson, "Pacman" Jones, and others have had brushes with the law during the lockout. A sentiment that’s been kicking around has been that these players should be exempt from NFL discipline because they were locked out. I’m not sure exactly why that makes sense to some people, but apparently it does. They are still a reflection of the league and their respective teams. Their off-the-field actions do have the potential to invade the locker room and disrupt their teams.

Especially Britt… Usually, I’m pumped and proud when an NFL player comes from the banks of the Raritan. Not here. Any way you slice it, he’s a black eye for the Scarlet Knights. How dumb can you be? Is it that hard to stay out of trouble? As a layperson, I envision it being even easier to avoid trouble when you are a millionaire. That logic would seem to be flawed though, because certain guys like Britt and Cedric Benson seem to always find it.

Never thought this guy would bring shame to my school...You only get a certain number of "wrong place at the wrong time" claims before people lose faith. Britt's season, and even career, may be in jeopardy. 

Roddy White was recently on “Mike & Mike in the Morning” on ESPN Radio. He delivered his opinion on certain things, including Roger Goodell and the NFL’s handling of discipline. He spoke for a faction of NFL players in saying that he believed there should be a specific discipline code for violations, and that the Commissioner should not have any discretion in handing down fines or suspensions. This might seem like a sound idea (and Roddy White is by and large a good guy), but there are holes in that logic. How do you police repeat offenders? What if a player gets a DUI, then a year later gets arrested for assault, then a year later for drug possession? Are they 3 independent separate discipline offenses, or do the later charges compound discipline? You simply can’t write up enough policy to address all of that.

Has Roger Goodell narrowed his eyes at James Harrison too often? Some think so. I'm of the opinion that he's actually done a pretty decent job as the NFL Commissioner.  

Even if you try to lump all “arrests” under a policy, the severity of (for example) an arrest for possession of marijuana is much different than an arrest for a DUI manslaughter. Do you then make up a flow chart?

"If a guy is arrested once for possession, then for a DUI, he gets discipline A."

"If a guy is arrested once for possession, then for assault, he gets discipline B."

Discretion of a judge prevails (supposedly) in our justice system, so why can’t Roger Goodell exercise discretion in these cases?

Hines Ward has had a pretty solid reputation off the field prior to his DUI arrest. I realize that he was also arrested last year, but that was cleared up as a mix up.  With no prior issues, there should be some discretion in handing down his discipline. For someone like Benson, he has been in trouble a few times before. Guess what? When you continue to make mistakes, they follow you around.

What can you say? Some people (i.e. "Pacman" Jones) just love making it rain from time to time.

“Pacman” Jones? I mean, what else is there to say. Was there ever a doubt that he’d get in trouble again? I’m just pretty surprised that he made it that long without another brush up.

How about this for an idea? Don’t get in trouble. Or if you make a bad choice, be a man and take your medicine.

On Field Discipline

The reason Harrison went so hard after Goodell is because of his status as the most fined player for on-the-field hits last year. To some extent, he makes valid points. We have all seen bogus “roughing the passer” calls. We have seen guys called for “helmet-to-helmet” when the ball carrier lowers his head at the last second before impact. We have seen guys penalized for hitting a “defenseless receiver” when the hit actually knocks the ball out. There is no question that the league’s stance on this stuff is changing the game. I agree that these softer penalties need to be eliminated (but they won’t be).

DeSean Jackson getting his bell rung...Don't read into the fact that I have chosen this picture to illustrate violent hits (which, by the way, the NFL no longer wants to glamorize)

The reality is that we live in an era in which concussions are a hot button topic. NFL Vets are suing the league, claiming the league hid its knowledge about the effects of concussions from its players for years. To me, this does in fact come off as a call for the league to “protect its players”.

The other issue at play is the fact that these guys don’t play on guaranteed contracts, and their ability to earn a salary is strongly tied to their ability to stay healthy. A cheap shot or an unnecessary “head hunt” can end a player’s ability to earn a living. There has to be some protection for players against reckless hits. The league just needs to review how and when it issues penalties, fines, and suspensions for such hits.