The NFL compensation committee yesterday denied Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones' "request for another vote on a contract extension" for Commissioner Roger Goodell, according to Andrew Beaton of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The committee also again "advised Jones to drop the issue, saying that his unwillingness to do so 'reflects conduct unbefitting an owner and is damaging to the League.'" The exchange marked the "latest escalation of the unusual epistolary battle between Jones and his fellow owners over the league’s leadership." Jones over the weekend wrote to Falcons Owner and compensation committee Chair Arthur Blank, "We can’t possibly have authorized the terms of Commissioner’s contract extension yet, since we still have no idea what those proposed terms will be." Blank wrote back saying Jones was ignoring the facts "to satisfy your personal agenda" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/21). Meanwhile, PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio cited sources as saying that Jones "intends to seek a secret ballot of owners for a vote to be conducted in connection with the Goodell contract" during the Dec. 13 owners meeting. It is not known what the "specific purpose" of the secret ballot is. A majority of 17 owners is "required to trigger the process of secret balloting" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 11/20).
THE AWARD FOR BEST DRAMA GOES TO...: The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Jason Gay writes Jones vs. Goodell is "just the zesty matchup this NFL season needs." Gay: "Dirty laundry’s getting out. Insults are flying. Angry letters are being exchanged. ... We live in such crazy, tantrum-o-rama times that sometimes we don’t appreciate how bizarre a situation actually is. And this Jones v. NFL throwdown is truly bizarre." The NFL "prides itself on discipline and control." However, this scuffle is a "style war between a maverick and the company’s company man" and has become the "most delicious battle in sports" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/21). ESPN’s Jon Weiner said, “I don’t want this feud with Goodell and with Jerry Jones to ever stop. I don’t care if it affects the team or if it doesn’t affect the team. I want this thing to go on forever.” Dan Le Batard: “We all want that, don’t we? We want Jerry to have no distractions, being bothered by winning and other things, and be just dedicated to the cause of fighting Roger Goodell. Now he can clear his plate and just fight Goodell” (“Highly Questionable,” ESPN, 11/20).
