The NFL and the NFL Players’ Association have been able to eventually come to agreements on several issues in recent years, from assigning a neutral arbitrator for on-field penalties to a new drug policy.
But the what’s brought the most attention to the league – much of it negative or flat-out ridicule – has been when it comes to off-the-field matters. Since taking over as commissioner, Roger Goodell has become a czar of discipline, and the results of late have not been good.
Even with the victories the NFLPA has gained through arbitration and federal court, with Judge Richard Berman vacating Tom Brady’s four-game suspension, union executive director DeMaurice Smith knows such battles are not good for the game.