Roger Goodell Addresses Player Suspensions, CBA Negotiations

Goodell Discusses StarCaps Case, CBA Talks During TV Appearances

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell yesterday said he elected not to suspend Saints DEs Will Smith and Charles Grant because the league should not have "different standards for different players." The NFL moved to suspend Smith and Grant, along with Vikings DTs Pat and Kevin Williams, for violating the league's drug policy. But a Minnesota court blocked the NFL from suspending the Williamses, and Goodell said, "I think it's clear that we should treat the four players the same." Goodell: "The court had ruled that we were correct in the way the policy was applied. But they also allowed the two players in Minnesota to pursue the state case in which case they've asked us not to suspend the players while that proceeds. So I feel the four players should be dealt with in fairness on the same standards." Goodell added, "Our hands are tied in the state court in Minnesota with the two players. They allowed us to go ahead and suspend the New Orleans players. But in the good of the game and what we think is in the best interest of the game, these four players should be treated the same" ("Jim Rome Is Burning," ESPN, 9/16).

BATTLE IN THE TRENCHES: Goodell also addressed CBA negotiations with the NFLPA and said, "We're at very early stages right now. We've had two formal negotiating sessions. There will be another before the end of the month. But we have a lot of work to do. We have to reach an agreement that makes sense for the players, for the owners and for the good of the game." Goodell said of the potential for a lockout season in '11, "Both parties will be prepared for all alternatives. I think that's smart on everyone's part. That's how you put yourself in the best bargaining position." Goodell noted he has had "regular dialogue" with NFLPA Exec Dir DeMaurice Smith, and added: "We have a good working relationship, but it's not about the two of us. It's about the negotiating teams getting something negotiated here that makes sense. This is not a personality issue" ("Jim Rome Is Burning," ESPN, 9/16). FOXSPORTS.com's Alex Marvez wrote the NFLPA's response to the Starcaps case "shows how frayed its relationship with the league has become." The NFLPA "presented a 400-page argument on behalf of the players accusing the NFL of fraud, negligence and bias in the suspension process." This will be "yet another issue the NFL and NFLPA haggle about as a new labor pact gets negotiated" (FOXSPORTS.com, 9/16).

ANOTHER MEETING FORTHCOMING: Sources said that the NFLPA has agreed to schedule a date for its third formal bargaining session concerning a new CBA with the NFL later this month, but the date had not been set as of yesterday (Liz Mullen, SportsBusiness Journal). The current CBA expires in March '11, and Goodell said, "We all would like to be at a different pace and at a different level with respect to the amount of progress, but we’ve got time and we’ve got at least all the right motivations to get something done that makes sense for the game, for the players and for the owners to allow us all to continue to be successful” (“NFL Total Access,” NFL Network, 9/17).