Richmond said he has spoken with colleagues on the Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee regarding Rams-SaintsGETTY IMAGES
U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.) "raised the specter of summoning NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to discuss the league's lucrative antitrust exemption," according to Drew Broach of the New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE. Congress in '61 "exempted" the NFL from "some antitrust laws so that its teams could negotiate television contracts as a monopoly." That break has "helped make the NFL the multi-billion-dollar enterprise it is today, and the league has worked hard" to keep it in place. Richmond "did not outright threaten congressional hearings on the exemptions," but his statement "made clear that lawmakers hold that authority." Richmond in a statement said he has "spoken with colleagues on the Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee" about inviting Goodell to "answer some important questions about the unfair call against the Saints, a call that he has the jurisdiction to overturn" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 1/24). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio wrote while it would be "easy to dismiss the statement as pandering to those who elected Richmond into office, it would be unwise to assume that every effort to compel Goodell to answer tough questions about how the NFL officiates games will automatically fail" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 1/23).
EVERYTHING OK DOWN THERE?A New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE editorial notes Goodell has "said nothing publicly" since the infamous Rams-Saints no-call. The editorial states, "Come out of hiding, Mr. Goodell. We don't need you to tell us what we all saw. We need you to tell us what you're going to do about it" (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 1/24). An editorial in GAMBIT, an alternative weekly owned by the New Orleans ADVOCATE, states Goodell is a "coward -- and a biased one at that." Goodell "owes" Saints Owner Gayle Benson, the team and the "city of New Orleans an apology and a swift plan of action to ensure nothing like this ever happens again." If he "can't muster the courage to do his job in the face of evidence as clear as this, he should step down -- or the owners should fire him" (THEADVOCATE.com, 1/23).
