Roger Goodell

• 1. Introduction

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  Roger Goodell arrived at the NFL offices in New York in 1982 not through a recruiter or a connection, but through a letter-writing campaign. He wrote to the league office and to all 28 teams, lobbying for an administrative internship. That determination got him in the door under Commissioner Pete Rozelle. What followed was a 24-year climb through every corner of the league's operations before he became commissioner himself. The questions worth asking are not simply how he got the job, but what he did with it, whose trust he earned, and whose he lost.

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• 2. The Climb

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  After his internship under Rozelle, Goodell briefly left the league office in 1983 to join the New York Jets as an intern. He was back in the league office by 1984, this time in the public relations department. In 1987, he was appointed assistant to Lamar Hunt, president of the American Football Conference. Under Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, Goodell moved through football operations, business roles, and executive functions. By December 2001, he held the title of executive vice president and chief operating officer. In that role he oversaw officiating, football operations, and the league's business units through a division called NFL Ventures, which covered media, marketing, sales, stadium development, and strategic planning.

  Goodell graduated from Washington and Jefferson College in Washington, Pennsylvania in 1981 with a Bachelor of Science in Economics. He grew up in Jamestown, New York, the son of United States Senator Charles Ellsworth Goodell. At Bronxville High School he captained the football, basketball, and baseball teams as a senior and was named athlete of the year. Injuries ended his prospects for college football, but the competitive instincts carried forward into the league office. When Tagliabue retired, Goodell emerged from a contested vote. On the fifth ballot, two owners shifted their support to give him 23 votes against 8, achieving the required two-thirds majority. The Oakland Raiders abstained in every round. On the 8th of August 2006, Goodell was chosen as commissioner. He assumed the office on September 1 of that year.

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• 3. Protecting the Shield

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  Goodell described his core responsibility as protecting the integrity of the game, a mission he often called "protecting the shield," a phrase drawn from the NFL's shield logo. In April 2007, following a year of significant off-field scandals, he announced a new Personal Conduct Policy. Tennessee Titans cornerback Pacman Jones was suspended for the entire 2007 season under the policy. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry received an eight-game suspension, and Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tank Johnson followed.

  On the 31st of August 2007, Goodell suspended Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson for five games and fined him $100,000 after Wilson admitted using a banned substance. New England Patriots safety Rodney Harrison received a four-game unpaid suspension for a similar admission. The league communicated to Wilson that his harsher penalty reflected a view that people in authority were held to a higher standard than players on the field.

  On the 19th of October 2010, fines went to Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison, Falcons cornerback Dunta Robinson, and Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather following controversial hits the previous Sunday. Goodell sent a memo to every team in the league stating that further action was required to emphasize safe and controlled techniques. Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu was among the players who pushed back, arguing that Goodell had assumed too much control and was reaching the wrong conclusions. Two national political advocacy groups, CREDO and UltraViolet, collected more than 100,000 signatures on a petition calling on Goodell and the NFL to address what they described as a domestic violence problem, a campaign that arose after Ray Rice received only a two-game suspension following an assault accusation.

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• 4. Spygate and the Destroyed Tapes

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  On the 9th of September 2007, the New England Patriots attempted to videotape the defensive signals of the New York Jets from an illegal position on the sideline. Goodell moved quickly. On September 13 he handed down penalties: head coach Bill Belichick was fined the league maximum of $500,000. The Patriots organization was fined $250,000 and forfeited a first-round pick in the 2008 NFL draft.

  Goodell ordered the Patriots to turn over all notes and tapes related to the illegal filming. Because the Patriots were unwilling to let the tapes leave their facilities, league officials traveled to the Patriots' athletic facility by Goodell's order and physically destroyed them. The decision to smash the tapes drew significant criticism. Goodell explained that Belichick's dual role as effective general manager and head coach meant his conduct was properly attributed to the organization. He said he had considered suspending Belichick but concluded that the financial penalty and the loss of a draft pick would be more effective.

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• 5. Bountygate and the Saints

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  In March 2012, Goodell revealed that players and coaches on the New Orleans Saints had run a bounty program in which defensive players received bonuses for deliberately knocking opposing players out of games. As many as 27 Saints defensive players were involved. Then-defensive coordinator Gregg Williams had administered the program before moving to the St. Louis Rams.

  The penalties Goodell imposed were among the harshest in league history. Williams received an indefinite suspension, though he was reinstated at the start of the 2013 season. Head coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season. General manager Mickey Loomis was suspended for eight games. Assistant head coach Joe Vitt received a six-game suspension. The Saints organization was fined the league maximum of $500,000 and lost their second-round draft picks in both 2012 and 2013. Goodell stated that his anger was sharpened by the fact that those involved had lied to league investigators during two separate investigations of the program. Sanctions on individual players were deferred while the NFLPA conducted its own review.

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• 6. Deflategate and Due Process

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  After the Wells Report indicated that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had awareness of team employees deflating game balls, Goodell suspended Brady for four games. The NFLPA filed an appeal on the 14th of May 2015. Despite requests from the Players Association for a neutral arbitrator, Goodell presided over the appeal himself, holding the hearing on June 23.

  On July 28, Goodell upheld the suspension, pointing to Brady's destruction of his cell phone as evidence that Brady had known about and supported the tampering scheme. The same day, the league filed papers in Manhattan federal court to formalize the decision. Brady issued a statement saying he had never been told that refusing to surrender his phone would result in discipline. On August 4, U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman ordered the appeal transcript released to the public, and writers identified contradictions between Goodell's stated reasoning and Brady's own testimony.

  Berman vacated Brady's suspension on September 3, citing a failure of fair due process. Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports wrote that the ruling declared not Brady innocent but the NFL guilty of violating federal law in its attempt to find him guilty. Michael Hurley of CBS Boston noted that the league's own case rested on Article 46 of the collective bargaining agreement, and that Berman used Article 46 to show the process had been unfair.

  The NFL appealed. The hearing before the Second Circuit took place on the 3rd of March 2016, with Circuit Judge Denny Chin stating that the evidence of ball tampering was compelling, if not overwhelming. On the 25th of April 2016, the Second Circuit reinstated the four-game suspension. Chief Judge Robert Katzmann dissented, writing that the commissioner had been doling out his own brand of industrial justice. The Washington Post had reported as early as the 21st of May 2015 that Goodell's push to suspend Brady harshly was part of a personal power play.

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• 7. The Anthem and After

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  On the 23rd of May 2018, Goodell and NFL owners approved a policy requiring players to stand during the national anthem or remain in the locker room. Any player who protested on the field would be subject to discipline, and the player's team could also face league punishment.

  After the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police renewed Black Lives Matter protests, Goodell reversed course, encouraging players to speak more freely. At a press conference on the 3rd of February 2025, he reaffirmed the league's commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, stating that those efforts had led to attracting better talent and that getting different perspectives from people with different backgrounds made the organization stronger. He framed it as something that would have a tremendous impact on the league for many years.

  Away from the podium, Goodell married former Fox News Channel anchor Jane Skinner in October 1997. They have twin daughters, born in 2001. His brother Michael married Jack Kenny, the creator of the NBC series The Book of Daniel, and the Webster family on that show was loosely based on the Goodell family. Goodell starred as himself in the NFL 100 commercial that aired before Super Bowl LIII. Every year since 2011 he has been booed when he takes the stage at the NFL draft, a tradition he is reported to enjoy.

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