NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's reaction to the events on Thursday surrounding Dolphins first-round pick Laremy Tunsil demonstrated "another slice of tone deafness" and was "cruel," according to Jarrett Bell of USA TODAY. Goodell on Friday on ESPN Radio's "Mike & Mike" said of Tunsil's slide in the first round, "It's what makes the Draft so exciting." Bell wrote Goodell "needed to strongly condemn whoever was behind the sinister acts intended to damage Tunsil at a time when his football exploits were celebrated on the NFL's red carpet." It is "no wonder that Goodell was so routinely booed" on the stage in Chicago (USA TODAY, 5/1). In Chicago, Barry Rozner gave "credit" to Chicago football fans for showing Goodell the "proper disrespect he deserves." Goodell kept coming out on stage, and Chicago "kept handing it to him" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 5/1). Also in Chicago, Greenstein, Thompson & Bannon noted Goodell "responded to Saturday morning boos by saying: 'C'mon, bring it on' and motioning with his arms for more noise." More "boos came." Goodell then said, "There you go" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 5/1). ESPN BOSTON's Mike Reiss asked, "When commissioners from other sports are front and center at events like the draft, do they get booed as ferociously as Roger Goodell does and then say 'bring it on'?" (ESPNBOSTON.com, 5/1).
TAKE IT EASY ON THE KID: ESPN.com's Harvey & Weinfuss noted NFLPA President and Bengals OT Eric Winston on Friday "blasted the NFL" and Goodell after the commissioner's comments on Tunsil. Winston: "It just shows you where their head's at. It just shows you that they can care less that this kid's world just fell apart in a matter of three hours." Winston added, "At the end of the day, here's what I do know: When you go on TV the next day as the commissioner and say, 'Man, wasn't that great TV? That was awesome TV,' instead of saying something completely different and having a little bit of heart for the kid" (ESPN.com, 4/29). ESPN's Michael Smith said of Goodell's comment, "That was a stupid thing to say. ... There was nothing exciting about that." ESPN's Bomani Jones added, "It was pretty good television. You just can't be the commissioner jumping up and exploiting it." Jones added, "You cannot be the guy to say this is what caused excitement. At least pretend to care about the fact that one of your players was just humiliated in a horrible way on national television." The Washington Post's Kevin Blackistone said, "Can you be more disingenuous? ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 4/29).
NOT THE BEST MOVE: In DC, Matt Bonesteel wrote describing the NFL Draft as "so exciting doesn't really come to mind" unless you are Goodell. He "certainly knew all about" Tunsil's situation by the time he made his comments on Friday morning, "making his response even worse" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 4/29). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Darin Gantt wrote, "Gosh, thanks Roger, I'm sure Tunsil is relieved that you have such high hopes for him, after he was opened up to ridicule and persecution if not prosecution." Nevertheless, the drama during the draft was "gripping, and the ratings were probably through the roof" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 4/29). The N.Y. Daily News' Mike Lupica said the drama surrounding Tunsil "was a form of human drama" that "hijacked draft night." It was a "weird, unexpected form of reality TV. ... But exciting? The commissioner certainly has a funny definition of that but let's face it, he's got a funny definition of justice too" ("The Sports Reporters," ESPN, 5/1). THE MMQB's Peter King wrote Goodell's comments "were tone-deaf," but let us "not act like this was Laremy Tunsil's funeral" (MMQB.SI.com, 5/1). The DAILY HERALD's Rozner wrote Goodell at this point "is an NFL punchline," but it is the "random nature of his justice system that affects most people." It "doesn't seem at all likely that he wonders" about his perception and it is even "less likely that anyone around him will tell him the truth" (Chicago DAILY HERALD, 5/1).
WHIPPING BOY: PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio wrote it is "confounding that Goodell willingly subjects himself to this treatment, and it's confusing that the owners would choose to allow such open hostility to tarnish the crown jewel of the offseason" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 4/30). The CHICAGO TRIBUNE's Greenstein, Thompson & Bannon ranked winners and losers from the Draft, with politeness listed as a loser. Few would dispute that Goodell "deserves to be jeered," but "every time he walks on stage and opens his mouth?" Goodell's advisers were winners, as the Commissioner "thanked the fans, the people of Chicago, the city of Chicago and the Bears," but "did not mention Mayor Rahm Emanuel." This was a "clever way to avoid more boos" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 5/1).
