The End of the NFL Starts with Goodell
Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the NFL, shadowed the entire league with shame today. His wrath will have no limits and his gavel will know no bounds. The fans despise him, as evidenced by the loud charade of “boos” that met him during his opening speech at the 2011 NFL Draft. Players call him the devil (especially James Harrison) and the NFL will never be the same because of him.
Goodell is making the playing field even for all the prima donas that play football. The prissy sissy’s that complain when they get hurt are being given the competitive advantage over the real men that play football. James Harrison is a perfect example; he is punished because he is a hard hitter. I do not for one second believe that James Harrison wishes ill intent on anyone that he tackles, sacks, or hits; it’s business. It’s like fining Carlos Mencia for making fun of the fat man in the front row with a bald spot. As Skip Bayless would say, it’s “Unconstitutional!”
As a football fan, I am greatly concerned by the path at which the NFL is gearing towards. Every time someone gets hurt, Goodell will try to invent a way to prevent it from happening. Football is not for the weak of heart. Football is a full contact, knock that crap out of your opponent sport. It is brutal, violent, and is played by a bunch of savage men that are freakish athletes. Hundreds of pounds of man and muscle are hurling themselves at each other every Sunday, and our nation has grown to love it.
What would “The Manster” (Randy White) do if he was told that he was hitting people too hard? I’d like to imagine he would ignore it, because only real men speak in the company of the Dallas Doomsday Defense. How effective would one of the best special teams players in the history of the league (Bill Bates) say if Goodell told him he can’t knock the living snot out of someone returning a punt, or kickoff? I imagine about the same thing my High School football coach said at the beginning of two-a-days every year, “If you don’t want to hit, go play golf.”
There are some rules that are legitimate, like the horse collar. Even though I loved the breakneck speed, pound-your-face-in Roy Williams, that horse collar injured quite a few players. I even agree with moving the kickoffs to the 35 yard line because we did see a decrease in injuries, and it made the return game more exciting. But when we let the likes of Tom ‘Prissy Pants’ Brady determine that it should be a penalty when someone coughs at his bad knee, the league is in trouble.
Sean Payton has been suspended for 1 year without pay to begin on April 1st by the NFL (Roger Goodell) due to his involvement in the bounty-program that took place in the Saints organization in 2009, 2010, and 2011. As a Head Coach, I do believe that he should be held responsible for the actions of Greg Williams (former Saints DC), but 1 year will cripple the Saints franchise. Not only do they lose out on one of the best offensive minds in the game, they lose two 2nd round picks (one in 2012 draft, one in 2013 draft), and the GM will be suspended as well (but I don’t know how you suspend a GM exactly…) Drew Brees has yet to sign his franchise tag; good luck now. If I were him I would rather sit this entire year out and pout a la Vincent Jackson style.
The big losers in all of this are the St. Louis Rams, who had nothing to do with it. They have lost their defensive coordinator (Greg Williams) and now have yet another coaching staff hole to fill. Yes, Greg Williams participated in the program, but there is no reason to rob another team of a chance to better itself. How about take away his pay, or have his pay go towards the retired players fund? Allow him to still help his team that had nothing to do with this fiasco other than hiring a defensive coordinator.
As a Cowboys fan, I feel that we have been robbed of an awesome game. The last two occasions the Cowboys played the Saints were epic battles. I remember watching in awe of our defensive stud, DeMarcus Ware, coming off a neck injury and letting Drew Brees have a handful. I remember how proud I felt watching my Cowboys as they knocked off the Saints in New Orleans and propelled themselves into the playoffs. I also remember Roy Williams (WR) running down the field and wishing he would have just laid down; but instead was stripped of the football from behind that lead to the Cowboys eventual loss.
The Cowboys will not face the same Saints that they are used to, and I don’t think that the Saints have much of a chance at being competitive in their division this year. Goodell is not wrong to have dealt punishment, but he is wrong in the amount of punishment. It’s about time that owners step up to Goodell, and abolish his reign. If Gene Upshaw were here, he would not tolerate the actions of Goodell and the NFL. It’s about time someone filled those footsteps…
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