A group of NFL owners -- "spurred by the NBA's harsh
penalty" against the T'Wolves for their secret agreement with
F Joe Smith -- "will lobby" NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue
"to come down hard" on Browns President & former 49ers exec
Carmen Policy and Broncos Owner Pat Bowlen for their alleged
salary cap violations, according to Moore & Judge of
FoxSports.com. One NFL owner "not aligned with the hard-line
opponents" of Policy and Brown, on how NBA Commissioner David
Stern's ruling against the T'Wolves could "influence"
Tagliabue: "I've heard from several owners who believe this
makes a difference in how this is handled. There have been
discussions and e-mails exchanged since Stern's ruling."
Several NFL owners "seem to believe" that Stern's ruling
"established a precedent regarding salary-cap punishment that
could extend to the NFL's turf." The aforementioned owner:
"One of the reasons this has been dragging on for so long is
because there was some question as to what power the
commissioner had in these matters. Now, we have an example."
Ravens Owner Art Modell said, "I'm overwhelmed with the David
Stern act. Clearly, it was [the] harshest I've ever seen.
To me, a slap on the wrist here will disgrace the [NFL]"
(FoxSports.com, 10/28). CBS SportsLine's Len Pasquarelli
wrote that Stern's "actions were decisive and relatively
expeditious, particularly in light of how long it has taken"
Tagliabue to rule on cap allegations. One NFL exec said, "I
wouldn't say we've got (the 49ers) quite as red-handed as the
Timberwolves were" (CBS SportsLine, 10/27).