How Much Power does One Man Need?

Oh look Emperor Goodell has finally decided on a punishment for Michael Vick. Congrats! I wonder what took him so long? Maybe he had an NFL player shining his shoes or washing his car because they broke curfew or got a speeding ticket. I understand that he has a league to protect, but why is he Judge Dredd (the judge, jury, and executioner)?

Look, Michael Vick paid his debt to society (regardless of what you think about his crime. If the FBI is satisfied with it then you should be too). He served 23 months in prison, lost out on a $130 Million NFL contract, and embarrassed his name and Momma. And now on top of that he has a suspension of around 6 weeks? Goodell could very well extend this suspension all season long if he sees fit. All he promised was that after the 6th week of the season he will review Vick's progress. Not even our legal system works like this. Imagine being convicted of a crime and at sentencing the judge says "I'll review your case in 6yrs, if all is well you can get out, and if not I can sentence you to whatever I deem to be appropriate. Now it could be another year OR it could be life in jail". And that punishment would be basically for the same crime that you were convicted of!

Goodell is in a position where his power can't be checked by anyone, and that's scary. We live in a country where you are innocent until proven guilty. If that is the case, then how is it that Goodell has been able to suspend Pac Man Jones and Plaxico Burress indefinitely without either of them EVER being convicted of a crime? Not to mention this is without pay as well. I'm not here saying that Pac Man or Plax are great guys or that either of them won't be convicted at some point in time, but what if they weren't convicted? Wouldn't that mean that Goodell has taken away their ability to make a living over an incident(s) that they were proven innocent of? I don't know about you but I would be on the phone to my lawyer after that verdict came in to see if we had a case against the NFL and name Roger Goodell in it personally.

No one man should have complete authority over an entire league that consist of 32 teams. Not even our President has that type of power over the 50 states (it's an interesting similarity if you think about it). Our country was founded because we wanted to escape the tyrannical powers of kings in Europe and now these millionaire football players have to deal with one. I completely agree if the team that owns the rights to Plax, Vick, or Pac Man want to suspend them (with pay) while they are being investigated by the proper authorities, but Goodell shouldn't be able to supercede the owner's ability to carry this out by just suspending them indefinitely. And if the team decides to waive the player then it should be up the other owners to decide if that player is a good fit for their ball club. The other owners will need to take into account the economy, their fanbase, other player's feelings, and the what their front office thinks. In this economy I bet that almost all 32 teams would steer clear of Plax (could be headed to jail so why sign him), Pac Man (just as much of a head case as Marbury, and I know you've seen his webcast or at least heard about it), and Vick (can't kill dogs in America, that's a big no-no). This would get Goodell's point across without having to be King George, Suddam, Henry VIII, or the warden from Shawshank. Not only are these players dealing with the potential loss of their freedom but they know that guilty or not they have just volunteered to take a huge paycut. That's penalty enough at least for the 1st offense. After jail time there is no need for an additional suspension. What does Goodell hope to see in the next 2 or 3 months? Does he want to see Vick walking people's dogs and the become the cover boy for Petco? Should Vick go on Larry King Live and cry? Speaking of TV shows, how come Law and Order hasn't done an episode covering an athlete who fights dogs??? Or better yet, what does Vick has to do in order to get his suspension made even longer? Go to a strip club (which while not smart isn't illegal), get a traffic ticket, miss a payment on a credit card, or in a twist of irony, get caught on camera walking a dog? The point is that Goodell isn't going to see anything in the upcoming months that will make him extend Vick's suspension. And if anything were to happen, then with his powers he could just suspend him for another offense. Not fully reinstating Vick was his way showing every player what he can do with his power.

In my opinion, if Goodell is going to flex his muscle he should be consistent and do it across the board with every player who breaks the law. But he doesn't and that's what makes him even more dangerous. Case in point, why is Matt Jones (former Jax Jag WR who was caught with crack in his car in Arkansas) still able to try to find a team and not suspended "forever" while Goodell does his own "investigation"? And to prove my previous point, no owners have stepped up and offered him a contract to date in spite of him not being suspended. Why hasn't he taken a harder stance on athletes who have completely broken the law in the United States as well as a rule in the NFL when they take steroids? Instead he suspends them for only 4 games. Where's the review of those cases, where's the community service, and where is the indefinite suspension???

This is the reason why no one should have complete control over an entity in which they don't own. It's only natural that discrepancies like these will creep up. Protecting the shield of the NFL like protecting the U.S should not be left up to one person. I hope the NFLPA thinks about this when they sit down to hammer out the collective bargaining agreement.


L. Glaze