Apr 3

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Today At A Glance:

Roger Goodell is one of the most controversial figures in sports. Today’s newsletter breaks down how the NFL Commissioner has expanded the league’s business, soiled his reputation with fans, and ultimately, made $500 million in total compensation.

This newsletter is also available via podcast on Apple or Spotify. Enjoy!

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Friends,

The NFL’s annual league meeting took place last week. All 32 team owners, head coaches, and general managers met at the Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona, and they were joined by media personnel, including reporters, insiders, and others.

The four-day event is held on an annual basis — the 2022 meeting was at The Breakers in Palm Beach, Florida — and many things are discussed, including proposed rule changes, potential scheduling conflicts, and disciplinary actions.

For example, NFL owners at this year’s meeting debated whether they should be able to flex Thursday Night Football games. They heard proposals from the league’s competition committee and voted on 10+ rule changes. And many of the owners conversed and speculated on the impending Washington Commanders sale.

But perhaps the most important item on this year’s docket involved the upcoming contract extension for NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

Goodell has worked at the NFL for more than 40 years. He started as an intern in 1982 after graduating from Washington & Jefferson College. He was named commissioner in 2006, and he has since earned roughly $500 million as the NFL’s de facto CEO.

Of course, Goodell’s tenure as NFL Commissioner hasn’t been 100% positive. There are questionable suspensions and several high-profile lawsuits. Many fans complain about rising ticket prices and “greedy” owners. And many of the rule changes have lowered the overall aggressiveness and taken physicality out of the sport.

But still, Roger Goodell has done an excellent job for his bosses — I’m talking about the 32 billionaire NFL owners he reports to. Let me explain.

Ron Cook: Roger Goodell continues to be driving force behind NFL's success | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Roger Goodell was born and raised in Westchester County near New York City. He comes from a wealthy family — his father was a Washington D.C. lawyer and served as a U.S. Senator — and he is the middle child in a family of five boys.

Goodell attended Bronxville High School and was a three-sport athlete, lettering in baseball, basketball, and, of course, football. He then went to Washington & Jefferson College, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1981 with a degree in economics.

But unlike his classmates, who went to work for investment banking firms in New York City, Roger Goodell had a different dream: become NFL commissioner.

“When he graduated from W&J, Roger Goodell wrote his father a letter, thanking him for college,” says the Washing & Jefferson website. “In the letter he wrote, “The only thing I want to do in life, other than to be the commissioner of the NFL, is to make you proud.”

So Goodell went to work. He wrote letters to the NFL’s office and each of the league’s 28 teams asking for an internship. Many teams turned him down or didn’t even respond, but then he received a letter from NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle.

The result? A three-month internship working in the NFL league office.

Roger Goodell's cover letter from 34 years ago

Goodell spent the Summer clipping and copying news articles for the NFL’s public relations staff, and he eventually left for a one-year internship with the New York Jets.

But Goodell returned to the NFL league office in 1984 and never left again.

The New York native spent three more years on the PR team before being named assistant to Lamar Hunt, president of the American Football Conference (AFC).

Paul Tagliabue was then named commissioner of the NFL, and Roger Goodell became his right-hand man, holding six different positions from 1990 to 2001:

Director of International Development and Club Administration
Vice President of Operations
Vice President of Business Development
Senior Vice President of League and Football Development
Executive Vice President of Business and Football Development
Executive Vice President of Business Properties and Club Services

And after proving his value and worth to the league over more than 17 years, NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue named Roger Goodell Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the NFL in 2001.

Goodell was mainly responsible for NFL Ventures, which managed the NFL’s media properties, marketing, sales, consumer products, international business, stadium development, special events, and strategic planning. And he accomplished a lot:

Led expansion, realignment, stadium development, and international affairs
Was a key player in the launch of the NFL Network
Managed negotiations for media deals and the CBA with the NFLPA

So when Paul Tagliabue announced his retirement in 2006, the choice was clear — Roger Goodell beat out four other candidates and was unanimously approved by the owners as the eighth commissioner in NFL history.

“Roger got his MBA from [NFL commissioners] Pete Rozelle and Paul Tagliabue. That’s not a bad education,” said New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft.

Roger Goodell: 10 Reasons He Will Be Viewed As the Worst Commissioner in History | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors | Bleacher Report — (Image: Roger Goodell (left) poses with Paul Tagliabue (right))

The past 17 years have been full of ups and downs for Roger Goodell. Generally speaking, most NFL fans and players don’t seem to like him all that much.

For example, Goodell implemented a stricter personal conduct policy for all NFL employees in 2007. It essentially gave him the power to act as judge, jury, and executioner, and enabled him to hand out harsh (and inconsistent) punishments.

Here’s how Bleacher Report described Goodell’s punishment process in 2015:

“It starts with those seemingly inconsistent disciplinary rulings, some of which were for a while tied to flawed policies, which Goodell either helped implement or was slow to tweak.”

“The sentence Goodell handed down for the bounty scandal in 2012 crippled the New Orleans Saints, and the league has now twice docked the New England Patriots first-round picks for scandals regarding seemingly minor breaches of the integrity of the game. And at a player level, guys are routinely suspended four or more games for seemingly harmless violations of the league’s policy on substance abuse.”

“While Cleveland Browns receiver Josh Gordon missed the majority of the 2014 season, mainly for smoking too much weed, Goodell originally suspended running back Ray Rice just two games for a domestic-violence incident in which he was caught striking his then-fiancee on camera.”

“Juxtapose Gordon and Rice’s punishments and throw in the five-game suspension Terrelle Pryor served in 2011 for selling merchandise while in college and you begin to wonder what’s happening.”

“(Later, in what many construed to be an attempt to save face in light of new, damning evidence, Goodell and the league suspended Rice indefinitely. But a neutral arbiter overturned that sentence on appeal, ruling that the penalty was “an abuse of discretion.” Turns out you can’t be blatantly reactive nor extreme when handing out sentences.)”

And Goodell also established many new rules to help with player safety, protect quarterbacks and encourage more scoring. But this has been seen as a negative by many fans, who dubbed the NFL the “No Fun League” under Goodell.

“According to Google Trends, the term “No Fun League” didn’t register on Google until the year Goodell took over for Tagliabue. Nowadays, it’s a popular colloquial phrase—one synonymous with Goodell’s reign,” wrote Bleacher Report in 2015.

In fact, Goodell has been so unpopular with fans that a 2015 ESPN poll revealed that 61% of NFL fans believe Roger Goodell should no longer serve as NFL commissioner.

But still, it’s important to remember that Roger Goodell works for the 32 NFL owners — and they appear to be *very* happy with him.

NFL Owners Not Likely To Make As Much News As Free Agency — (Image: Roger Goodell (left) with LA Rams owner Stan Kroenke (right))

The NFL’s business has exploded since Roger Goodell became commissioner in 2006.

The league will do about $20 billion in annual revenue this year, up from just $6.5 billion in 2006, and Goodell has publicly stated he wants the NFL to reach $25 billion in annual revenue by 2027.

Furthermore, Roger Goodell has also overseen two CBA negotiations with the NFLPA (2011 and 2020). And while 2011 saw a five-month work stoppage put in place by the NFL owners, seasons still carried on both times without any missed games.

2011: Saw increased pension program, new salary cap and floor, a 47 player/53 owner revenue split, and reduced OTA time.
2020: Saw expanded schedule to 17 games, expanded playoffs, new 48 player/52 owner revenue split, player pay increases, expanded gameday rosters, and elimination of marijuana suspensions.

This long period of labor peace has been great for the fans. But it’s been even better for the NFL’s TV partners — and that’s where Roger Goodell has really shined.

The NFL recently doubled its media rights revenue by signing various deals that will bring in $110 billion over the next ten years. That includes larger agreements with existing partners (CBS, FOX, NBC, and ESPN), as well as deals with new streaming partners like Amazon (Thursday Night Football) and YouTube TV (Sunday Ticket).

This is especially important because media deals make up about 60% of the NFL’s overall revenue and drive everything — from team revenue to player salaries.

And this level of business success for the NFL has directly impacted Roger Goodell.

Goodell reportedly earns over $60 million per year as NFL commissioner (+ bonuses) and has earned roughly $500 million during his tenure. For context, that’s $170 million more than any NFL player in history, and he didn’t even have to take a hit.

Highest-Paid NFL Players Ever

Tom Brady: $332 million
Aaron Rodgers: $305 million
Matthew Stafford: $300 million
Matt Ryan: $291 million
Drew Brees: $269 million

And while some people might think this is insane, Roger Goodell’s annual salary is roughly 2-3x what other commissioners make across the NBA, MLB, and NHL, which seems fair. And $60 million in salary represents just 0.3% of the NFL’s annual revenue.

So while many still consider sports an enjoyable outlet that brings people together, my point is simple: The NFL is a massive business, and everyone from the players and coaches to the owners and Roger Goodell have benefitted financially.

I hope everyone has a great day. We’ll talk on Wednesday.

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