The NFL this week is holding public hearings in St. Louis, Oakland and San Diego -- the three markets whose teams are interested in moving to L.A. -- and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the relocation process likely will include another "meeting as a league in December." Appearing on ESPN Radio's "Mike & Mike," Goodell said team owners could hold additional meetings during the first part of '16 "if we need to." He added, "We are getting to the point now where I think we have sufficient information -- both in the home markets ... and also sufficient information in Los Angeles -- to make a smart decision, but also a decision that’s thoughtful and considers all the different issues.”
BEING CAREFUL WITH DFS: Goodell noted the NFL has been "very careful" regarding its involvement in daily fantasy sites. While teams can sign sponsorship deals with DFS companies, they are not allowed "to use our trademarks." The NFL additionally does not "participate in any way from an equity standpoint, either at the league or the club level, which is different than many media companies and other leagues." Goodell acknowledged fans "are interested in playing daily fantasy." He said, "We just want to protect our fans. We want to make sure that there is proper consumer protection in there for them and we have encouraged them, and we think it’s important that our fans have that protection.” Goodell did stress the league is "not in favor of legalizing sport gambling." Goodell: "We think that that is a mistake for sports. The integrity of our game is the most important thing, and we want to make sure that our game is above any kind of influence."
LATEST ON DEFLATEGATE: The NFL yesterday filed a brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in the ongoing Deflategate case, and Goodell said the move is "about our rights" in the CBA. He said, "We filed this litigation initially to reinforce the fact that we had this right in our collective bargaining agreement. We had a decision from Judge (Richard) Berman. We disagree with it; that’s what appeals courts are for." Goodell noted he is "not spending any time on this issue," but said it is "important for us to know what we bargained for and what we agreed to in our collective bargaining agreement, and make sure that those processes that are agreed to in our collective bargaining agreement are followed" ("Mike & Mike," ESPN Radio, 10/27).
