The NFL's year that was

January
■ Members of the Oakland Raiders cheerleaders, the Raiderettes, become the first of five NFL cheerleading squads to file lawsuits against their respective teams for violating state labor laws. Other teams to have cases brought against them include the Buffalo Bills, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Jets and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
■ The NFL announces plans for its new online video service, NFL Now, that would later debut in August. The service provides highlights, news, features, archival material and on-demand programming.

February

CBS ponies up for a Thursday night package of games. Photo by: Getty Images

■ Super Bowl XLVIII on Fox draws the largest audience in U.S. television history with a 46.7 rating and 112.5 million viewers.
■ CBS is awarded the Thursday night package of games, a deal worth at least $275 million, for the coming season.
■ Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice and his then-fiancée are arrested stemming from a domestic dispute in Atlantic City.

Colts owner Jim Irsay gets smacked with a $500,000 fine. Photo by: Getty Images

March
■ The Bills announce that the team’s Toronto Series would not take place in 2014. By the end of the year, the series would be formally terminated.
■ Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay is arrested and charged with DUI and possession of a controlled substance. Irsay would later be suspended for six games and fined $500,000 for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.

May
■ Michael Sam is drafted in the seventh round by the St. Louis Rams, becoming the first openly gay player to be drafted by an NFL team. Sam would later be released by the Rams at the end of training camp and then cut from the Dallas Cowboys’ practice squad as well.

June
■ The Jacksonville Jaguars develop 20 party cabanas and two swimming pools as part of a $63 million renovation at EverBank Field.
■ The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office cancels some of the protections of the Washington Redskins’ trademark registration.

July
■ Carolina Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy is found guilty on two counts of domestic violence. Hardy would request a new trial by jury, which is scheduled to take place in February. Hardy would be placed on the exempt/commissioner’s permission list after appearing in one game this season.
■ The NFL suspends Rice for two games for his offseason arrest for domestic violence. Commissioner Roger Goodell comes under intense scrutiny for what is perceived as a light-handed punishment.

August
■ Beginning with the Hall of Fame Game, NFL teams are now equipped with Microsoft Surface tablets on the sidelines, the first time such technology is allowed.
■ Levi’s Stadium plays host to its first NFL game as the San Francisco 49ers host the Denver Broncos.
■ The NFL toughens its domestic violence policy to call for a six-game suspension for a first domestic violence offense and banishment from the league for a second offense. Goodell acknowledges his mistake with Rice’s two-game suspension.

September

The tabloids have a field day with the Ray Rice scandal.

■ TMZ releases a second video showing Rice knocking out his then-fiancée in an Atlantic City casino elevator. The Ravens release Rice and the NFL suspends him indefinitely.
■ Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is placed on the exempt/commissioner’s permission list after being indicted on a charge of reckless or negligent injury to a child. In November, the league would suspend Peterson without pay for the remainder of the 2014 season and state he can’t be considered for reinstatement before April 15.
■ Three games are played at Wembley Stadium in London in 2014 as part of the NFL International Series. The Raiders and Miami Dolphins play on Sept. 28; the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions on Oct. 26; and Jacksonville Jaguars and Dallas Cowboys on Nov. 9.
■ The Federal Communications Commission unanimously votes to repeal its sports blackout rule for the NFL.
■ “South Park” pokes fun at the NFL as the season premiere of the Comedy Central show lampoons the Washington Redskins name controversy, the league’s domestic violence crisis and even Jerry Jones’ alleged personal behavior.

October
■ NFL owners approve the sale of the Bills to Terry and Kim Pegula for a reported $1.4 billion.
■ The NFL and DirecTV announce a multiyear agreement to extend and expand exclusive rights to carry NFL Sunday Ticket.
■ The NFL begins testing for human growth hormone after the NFL Players Association approves the league’s drug policy proposal.
■ The league announces that the 2015 NFL draft will move to Chicago’s Roosevelt University Auditorium Theatre, marking the first time the event has been held outside of New York in 50 years.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announces some major plans. Photo by: Pro Football Hall of Fame

November
■ Pro Football Hall of Fame plans call for a hotel, conference center, restaurants, housing and a renovated Fawcett Stadium as part of the new Hall of Fame Village. New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson donates $11 million to the efforts and challenges other NFL owners to pledge $1 million in donations to the Legends Landing Program.
■ Arbitrator Barbara Jones overturns the indefinite suspension of Rice.

December
■ U.S. senators warn the NFL to get rid of its TV blackout rule or risk congressional action to restrict the league’s lucrative antitrust exemption.
■ General Motors tells the NFL that this season will be its last as a corporate sponsor after holding car and truck marketing rights since 2001.

January 2015
■ St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke says he plans to build an NFL stadium at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, Calif.
■ The NFL averages an audience of 17.6 million viewers per game during the regular season, flat with the 2013 season but up from both the 2011 and 2012 seasons. The season’s most-viewed game was Fox’s Eagles-Cowboys Thanksgiving telecast, which attracted 32.03 million viewers.
■ A report conducted by former FBI Director Robert Mueller is released and finds no evidence that anyone at the league office received the video revealed by TMZ in September that shows Rice punching his then-fiancée.

Source: SportsBusiness Journal research