Steelers President Art Rooney II prior to last night’s Steelers-Panthers game indicated that he, Giants President & CEO John Mara and former FBI Director Robert Mueller, who are overseeing the investigation into the NFL's handling of the Ray Rice case, will be “critical of all that has been done and then figure out how to correct the league's deficiencies,” according to NBC's Michele Tafoya. Rooney said that all three men “understand how much scrutiny this investigation is going to receive and none of them want to be part of a whitewash or a PR job.” Tafoya: “They are looking for answers” ("Sunday Night Football," NBC, 9/21). Mara was asked yesterday how the investigation was going, to which he simply replied, "It's going." He also was asked if he "felt comfortable in his role in the investigation" as the co-owner of an NFL team. Mara: "I don't want to comment on that. I'll have plenty to say when it's over" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 9/22).
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell during his press conference Friday defended the decision to have Mueller investigate the Rice case despite him working at the same law firm that has helped negotiate the league's TV deals. He said, "A lot of law firms, and maybe people, have had some interaction with us in the past. Robert Mueller has not. The law firm may have. We are hiring Robert Mueller, his credentials to do an independent investigation reporting to the owners and I’m confident that will be the case” (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 9/20). But in Chicago, Steve Rosenbloom wrote everybody watching the NFL "should question Mueller’s integrity, which disappeared when he accepted the invitation to investigate Goodell’s horrible handling of the Ray Rice case." In addition to negotiating the league's TV deal, Mueller's law firm has "worked for two NFL teams, the Cowboys and Redskins, in cases against the NFL." Rosenbloom: "This is a clear conflict of interest. Even the appearance of conflict of interest is a conflict of interest. Even a pinhead lawyer like Goodell could make that argument in court." Mueller's integrity "is done simply because he agreed to accept the investigation in this light and under the circumstances involved" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 9/21). In Denver, Mike Klis wrote the investigation is "badly tainted" in part because Mueller and Ravens President Dick Cass "once shared" the same law firm. Also, Rooney and Mara are "close confidants of Goodell" (DENVERPOST.com, 9/20).
