I don’t envy you in the least Mr. Goodell
As noted in a previous blog, I wanted to highlight the dilemma NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell now faces in light of Michael Vick being indicted for dog fighting crimes.
Many people believe Goodell should wait for the courts to decide whether or not Vick is guilty and then hand out a suspension, but quite frankly, Goodell doesn’t have to wait for anything. The NFL isn’t the U.S. court system in that a due process is required – Vick doesn’t have to be proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt before Goodell can take action. If Goodell feels that Vick has tarnished the reputation of his league, he has all he needs to hand out a suspension.
The problem, however, is what if Vick is eventually found innocent and Goodell already handed out a suspension? It’s not like you can take it back. I think in the end, if Goodell wants to suspend him immediately, he’s going to have to do it on the grounds of Vick embarrassing the league and tarnishing its image. What a suspension like that would entail I don’t know, but if Pacman Jones got 17 games for essentially hiding one of his charges from the league, what should a guy who watched dogs kill each other for entertainment get?
I’m not a fan of the NFL’s strict corporate image, but in this case I think they should suspend him.
Chances are, if any of us were accused of something like this, we would be suspended from our jobs, pending the outcome…for the accusation alone. You would definitely be suspended if you were employed by the government, (police officer or firefighter). So I don’t see the big deal if Goodell suspends him at least until the outcome of this trial, if not forever. People get suspended by their employers all the time but because this dog murdering punk can run fast and throw a football, people think we need to “wait until he receives due process”. If he was worthy of the privelege of playing in the NFL, he would not have put himself in this position in the first place. He’s not much different than Pacman Jones in that he has been accused several times of things but has always found a way to clear himself. You want to be a street punk, you will be treated like a street punk. I’m not going to plunk down my $240 for the NFL Ticket if these kinds of players continue to be employed by the league and THAT is the real dilemma Roger Goodell faces if more people feel the same way.
You and your $240 all get rolled into this whole Vick situation for Goodell, T-Bone. If he doesn’t suspend Vick, he may lose your and many others’ business. If he suspends Vick before anything is official, he might lose the fans that feel he should have waited for the trial to proceed. There are two sides to the fence here and many things to think about from Goodell’s standpoint.
Hang on gentlemen …….. indicted is not convicted. I am going to wait before I make my sentence on Mikey. Does this all make Marcus – the good brother ? Sad
Why does Goodell need to wait? What has Pacman been convicted of, yet we’re all ready to ban him from the league for life. Guys lose their jobs or get suspended all the time for making their company look bad, even if they didn’t break any laws, and Vick has made the NFL look pretty bad with this latest debacle (he hasn’t been a choir boy either the last few years). Goodell has that right and the answer is very simple for him: Suspend with pay until the outcome of a trial and if he’s acquitted, he gets probation, if he’s convicted, he’s suspended without pay indefinitely. Goodell will lose a lot more fans for NOT doing anything than for taking action and facing consequences from the union or public opinion later.
I would still wait Mr T Bone – we will know if there is a conviction soon – well before the season starts.
As of March 2007, Jones has been arrested five times and questioned by police ten times since he was drafted by the Titans in 2005.
I know I’m comparing one piece of shit to another, but comparing Pacman’s issues to Vick’s is a bit lopsided. Giving the double-fingered bird doesn’t constitute an arrest and neither does giving some chick herpes. And lets say for a moment Vick really did have weed in that water bottle in Miami, how bad is that compared to all of Pacman’s crap? I think people are more prone to lynch Pacman right now than Vick.
I agree, T-Bone, that if this were any other job in the world, he would have been gone when the allegations first heated up. However, the world of athletes and celebrities have already proven that the rules don’t apply to them and they’re on a different planet.
You still can’t have it both ways, guys. Pacman hasn’t been convicted of anything, he’s been arrested, just as Vick now has. I agree, he’s got more offenses…but are they as serious? From what I’m hearing and reading, the charge that the NFL really isn’t happy about is the gambling charge that’s included. They don’t mess with gambling…period.
Let’s not forget, these are the feds, not Mike Nifong looking to get reelected. They don’t bring charges against someone unless they think they’re going to get a conviction and they have resources that the states just don’t have so there will be less chance his lawyers can dazzle the jury as OJ’s did. The scum outside his inner circle are are going to give him up to save their own asses from jail time. Not to mention, it appears he lied to Goodell’s face since the Feds believe they’ve got enough evidence against him. He told Goodell he had nothing to do with it and I’m sure the man isn’t happy about it. Not good Mikey…just another athlete thinking he’s invincible and bigger than the league he plays in. Sorry…they’re on the same planet as you and me and shouldn’t be treated differently. Times are a changin’, Paris.
And if you think this case will be decided before the spring, you’re not thinking clearly.
I am not what you would call a “dog lover”, but this dirtbag didn’t just have dogs fighting and bet on them. He basically tortured the losers. Based on his performance in the NFL maybe Vick should have been tortured everytime he lost a game……
We are missing a big point here besides the NFL, tickets and fans. There is a large group of very passionate animal lovers in this country. What do you think they are going to do about this??
I heard on the radio where I live that a farmer had captured a three-legged coyote that was killing his animals. He strapped a stick of dynamite to the coyote and it ran under his brand new SUV and it exploded. The PETA people and other animal advocates were there in masses and made sure that he spent jail time and the insurance company did not pay for his SUV. What do you think they are going to do about Mr. Vick.
This guy is a piece of crap and is going to spend time in jail for this. The Feds have a 95% success rate prosecuting….this is no Duke Lacrosse team.
Well, the point of this post is the dilemma that Goodell faces and to be honest, I don’t think it’s that difficult a decision. Suspend him with pay until the trial is over and if he’s convicted, he’s out of the league. That would send a message to the other NFL players (and there are many) who are involved in these dog fighting rings that this type of behavior is not going to be tolerated. I do have a dog and I can’t imagine how anyone could treat those animals as he and the others did. You would have to be an animal yourself. That’s a fact, guys…not speculation. There’s hard evidence and carcasses that were recovered on his property. They shouldn’t have to wait until he receives due process to take action. He apparently lied to the commissioner’s and his owner’s faces and that alone would be enough to get you fired from your job.
This isn’t someone accusing him and there not being a shred of evidence to suggest otherwise as with the Duke situation. They’ve got several witnesses saying he was there and he was funding the operation. If he’s acquitted, does that mean he wasn’t involved? That he wasn’t there? That he knew nothing about it? OJ was acquitted..how do you feel about him?
This is simple………….
Arthur Blank is the guy I want to hear from just like we heard from the Chicago Bears
I do not want hear form anybody else………..
I am still going to wait for a conviction on Vick before I compare him to Pacman. But I will say in advance, if Vick is charged by the FEDS ,and these stories are true – it is a lot more serious than what a knucklehead, punk like Pacman has done.
You have some serious issues if you torture animals. You have to question a deranged mind here. Thats a violence sickness. It’s inhumane. It’s not traffic tickets or throwing money up in the air at a Ho House. But again – I will wait for guilty instead of charging him now.
I have these thoughts of these guys really getting off on torturing these animals. Freakin’ hanging and drowning dogs???? Holy shit! Those “people” are animals!
Sons a bitches!
I feel sorry for the Atlanta fans as they have a great QB and I believe they need him to win, but that bastard needs to meet bubba in jail.
If he did do some of this stuff himself, I sure he will pay someone millions to take the fall.
Ray Lewis
I certainly don’t want to speak for all Falcons’ fans, but I think the cold hard reality of the situation is now setting in. The end is probably near for a guy (at the very least, in Atlanta) who was supposed to take this otherwise morbid franchise to new heights. It doesn’t seem that long ago Vick was holding up that #1 jersey and now he’s allegedly involved in this sick/twisted/horrible act…what’s left to say if you’re a fan?
The sad part is that there tons of players, coaches and various other people who now have to deal with what this guy was mixed up in. Instead of concentrating on the Panthers, Bucs and Saints, great guys like Warrick Dunn and Alge Crumpler are going to have to field questions about this ass clown. But, unfortunately that comes with the job. I just can’t imagine this team can overcome the shit storm their about to face and Da Bear already hit on it – what are all the animal rights activists going to do? They’re going to protest every where this team goes.
I recently saw a picture of a dog mauled after a fight and it was utterly disturbing. How these guys – or any people for that matter – could partake in something like this, is beyond my comprehension.
Bay24…there’s a quadraplegic (spelling) bouncer from a club in Vegas who might think differently about whether what Vick is accused of is worse than Pacman.
And I accept your nomination, AS…I’ll have the league cleaned up in no time. There may not be many players left but dammit, it’ll be clean!!!
Get in there T-Bone and clean it up !
Mr Clean
I wonder what other players might be involved. Based on what Portis said a while back, I wouldn’t be surprised if dogfighting is a big subculture in the NFL.