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JDaveG · 10-21-2012, 08:14 PM

(10-19-2012 10:04 PM)AsylumGuido Wrote: No, Benson is an owner and one of Goodell's bosses. He can lay it on the line because Goodell has made many an enemy and has placed a large black mark on that shield he claims to protect.

Do you seriously believe that Goodell recused himself from the case after all of his high and mighty gesturing? No way. He was ordered to recuse himself and we all know only the owners can do that. And don't think that Benson had nothing to do with it. And I would expect that they also ordered him to "select" Paul Tagliabue as the Hearing Officer to take over in his stead.

Goodell screwed up BIG time in this whole affair and the owners are not happy about it.

Oh, yeah -- you've convinced me. He was ordered, by Benson, to recuse himself, or else.

Or else what? Well, Benson is from Louisiana after all. He probably knows a guy.

I bet he called Goodell a rat fink, too. Maybe put him in bed with a horse's head or something.

Either that or you've been watching too many mob movies.

***phocis850*** · 10-22-2012, 01:00 AM

I don't know about you guys, but I'm voting Goodell for president this November.

juraitwaluzka · 10-22-2012, 01:14 AM

(10-21-2012 08:14 PM)JDaveG Wrote: Oh, yeah -- you've convinced me. He was ordered, by Benson, to recuse himself, or else.

Or else what? Well, Benson is from Louisiana after all. He probably knows a guy.

I bet he called Goodell a rat fink, too. Maybe put him in bed with a horse's head or something.

Either that or you've been watching too many mob movies.

Pretty simple really, "Roger you better step aside young man or you will be getting no more thumbs up from me mister."

AsylumGuido · 10-22-2012, 10:50 AM

(10-20-2012 06:40 PM)TeamPlayer1 Wrote: The NFL must be protecting the snitches on the Saints to encourage other players in the future to come forward. I don't care about the future, if there any current or past players who made statements against Vilma, and he had the harshest penalty, name them now!

How can you be so dense.

Rolleyes

AsylumGuido · 10-22-2012, 10:51 AM

(10-22-2012 01:00 AM)phocis850 Wrote: I don't know about you guys, but I'm voting Goodell for president this November.

At the rate it is going he may be looking for a job by then.

Big Grin

AsylumGuido · 10-22-2012, 10:58 AM

(10-21-2012 08:14 PM)JDaveG Wrote: Oh, yeah -- you've convinced me. He was ordered, by Benson, to recuse himself, or else.

Or else what? Well, Benson is from Louisiana after all. He probably knows a guy.

I bet he called Goodell a rat fink, too. Maybe put him in bed with a horse's head or something.

Either that or you've been watching too many mob movies.

No, not Benson alone. You are aware of the fact that the Annual NFL Owners meeting was held last Tuesday in Chicago, right? Do you think it is a coincidence that Goodell, who already had the appeals scheduled for this Tuesday, suddenly recuses himself a couple of days later? I don't. I feel this was a directive from his bosses.

Beef · 10-22-2012, 11:37 AM

(10-22-2012 10:58 AM)AsylumGuido Wrote: No, not Benson alone. You are aware of the fact that the Annual NFL Owners meeting was held last Tuesday in Chicago, right? Do you think it is a coincidence that Goodell, who already had the appeals scheduled for this Tuesday, suddenly recuses himself a couple of days later? I don't. I feel this was a directive from his bosses.

Go figure, another slanted and biased assumption from the Assumption Queen.

Can you please stick to this thread and this thread alone? Stop subjecting us to your fucking vomit in other threads. Your input on any other subject than this one is really all you should be afforded. You have zero credibility and nobody gives a damn about your opinion on anything else. And we sure as hell don't want your congratulations. It's hollow and means nothing.

And you never replied to my forum bet. You claim the Saints go 12-4. If they do, I'll leave this forum forever. If they don't, you leave this forum forever. If you have the balls and truely believe your team will win out, you'll accept.

AsylumGuido · 10-22-2012, 01:00 PM

(10-22-2012 11:37 AM)Beef Wrote: Go figure, another slanted and biased assumption from the Assumption Queen.

Can you please stick to this thread and this thread alone? Stop subjecting us to your fucking vomit in other threads. Your input on any other subject than this one is really all you should be afforded. You have zero credibility and nobody gives a damn about your opinion on anything else. And we sure as hell don't want your congratulations. It's hollow and means nothing.

And you never replied to my forum bet. You claim the Saints go 12-4. If they do, I'll leave this forum forever. If they don't, you leave this forum forever. If you have the balls and truely believe your team will win out, you'll accept.

I have every right to participate in any thread I wish. As for your forum bet, as much as your leaving the forum forever would please many around here, I have stated before my membership here is too important to me to ever risk losing it.

mdrake34 · 10-22-2012, 01:04 PM

I wanted to start a separate thread on this, but as it would surely get derailed into saints bounty thread 2.0 I posted it here, where it will surely get lost. Discuss.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8524...hypocrites
A Hierarchy of Hypocrites
The Sports Guy wishes we could run our sports commissioners out of office and makes his Week 7 picks
By Bill Simmons on October 19, 2012

PRINT

This wasn't the best morning for Roger Goodell. Hours after former Viking Jimmy Kennedy practically ran out of ways to call the NFL's commissioner a "liar," Goodell announced that he would be recusing himself from hearing the Saints' latest bounty appeal. Taking over? Wait a second … good God, that's Paul Tagliabue's music! Can you remember another commissioner having his objectivity questioned so vociferously that he had to enlist his former boss to clean up his mess? Me neither.

And you wonder why Goodell might be wearing the "Most Dangerously Incompetent Commissioner in Sports" championship belt for the foreseeable future, even as his rival commissioners keep halfheartedly trying to steal it. David Stern waited until the last minute to unveil his ambitious anti-flopping agenda — his annual early-October headline grab, as mandated by the NBA's collective bargaining agreement. Unsatisfied with the public reaction, the Notorious D.J.S. upped the stakes with a hurried crackdown on pregame handshakes and chest-bumps. Wait, what?1 Meanwhile, Bud Selig keeps refusing to expand instant replay's parameters, if only because it's crucial that we keep pretending that every playoff baseball game is being played in 1923. And then there's Gary Bruce Bettman, the serial killer of the National Hockey League, someone who keeps murdering games and seasons without being caught. He's only missing a catchy/creepy nickname like the Zamboni Killer or the Canadian Bogeyman.

So for Goodell to stand out so blatantly, that means things had to escalate quickly, and maybe even that Brick killed a guy. In this case, "Brick" was Browns linebacker Scott Fujita, who didn't kill Goodell with a trident but definitely ethered him. Fujita didn't pour his feelings into a hostile dis song, write a takedown blog post or leak anonymous quotes to a writer with a forum. He handled his business the old-fashioned way: with a thoughtful missive. Tired of being dragged through the mud of New Orleans's bounty scandal, Fujita crafted 100 carefully chosen words to say everything about Goodell that needed to be said.

"The commissioner says he is disappointed in me," Fujita hissed. "The truth is, I'm disappointed in him. His positions on player health and safety since a 2009 congressional hearing on concussions have been inconsistent at best. He failed to acknowledge a link between concussions and post-career brain disease, pushed for an 18-game regular season, committed to a full season of Thursday night games, has continually challenged players' rights to file workers compensation claims for on-the-job injuries, and he employed incompetent replacement officials for the start of the 2012 season. His actions or lack thereof are by the league's own definition, 'conduct detrimental.'"

Translation: This dude is a H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-T-E.

If you noticed, Goodell never responded — not even after Fujita called him "condescending" and "extremely desperate," then complained about Goodell's "absolute abuse of the power that's been afforded to the Commissioner." By continuing to trade shots with Fujita, Goodell would have inadvertently broken the golden rule of hip-hop: Thou shalt never beef down. And after word trickled out last weekend that Fujita had suffered a potentially career-ending neck injury, there was little chance Goodell would fire back. Even Stern during his swaggerlicious apex wouldn't have feuded with a badly injured player.2

Then again, can you really fight back after you've just been checkmated? Everything Scott Fujita said was true. Fujita even left a little on the table: He could have hammered Goodell for increasing the number of Thursday-night games to 13, then spinning it by saying this now allowed every team a chance to play in prime time. Has there ever been a lamer excuse for a shameless money grab? When your franchise sucks, there's nothing worse than playing in prime time. In the days of B.B.B. (Before Belichick and Brady), I came to dread every Patriots night game — it was like shining a giant spotlight on a chin full of pimples. If you can't sell out that home game, it's even more embarrassing. And I'm pretty sure fans would rather watch good games than bad ones — I'm almost positive. So that "every team gets a chance!" crap just isn't genuine.

The league's Thursday-night commitment keeps getting lost in the shuffle when Goodell gets hammered for all the other things Fujita brought up. How can you make football safer while ADDING Thursday-night games? Did Goodell even blink two Thursdays ago when a battered Steelers team started falling apart one player at a time, then was nearly forced to play a backup tight end on its offensive line? What about when the Ravens played four games in 17 days, then immediately suffered a slew of devastating injuries to the surprise of absolutely nobody on the planet? What about Frank Gore slumped on San Francisco's bench at the end of last night's brutally physical Seahawks-Niners game, nursing bruised ribs and a battered body, having endured two slugfests in five days (the other against the Giants)? He downplayed it afterward and claimed his coach was just being careful, adding, "We've got a long season." You're being careful during a crucial division game with your star running back who just garnered 182 rushing/receiving yards in three-plus quarters? That's a good direction for the league?

Even if you're giving Goodell the benefit of the doubt — and holy &$@#*%! is it hard, but let's say it's possible — he can't be defended on these reckless Thursday games. Last night, the Seahawks hung around for the first half, squandered multiple chances to pull away (dropping five balls in all, including two potential monster pass plays), then wilted down the stretch like the rabbit in a 5k race. They were running on fumes. News flash: That's how players get hurt. If you're pretending to care about player safety, and that it's not just a pathetic attempt to cover your asses for the wave of looming concussion lawsuits, then wouldn't it make sense to carve out more recovery time for players?

Here's the real reason for those 13 Thursday-night games every year, in case you were wondering …

Whoops, sorry. Here's the right link.

The headline reads "NFL Could Get $1 Billion a Year for Thursday Package." And actually, the price will climb higher than that because the NBC Sports Network needs those Thursday-night games more than the Walking Dead guys need clean shirts.3 Have you ever looked at the NBC Sports Network (a.k.a. W.E.T. for "White Entertainment Television") on a night when there's no hockey … which, you know, is every night right now?

Last night, they showed four hours of 2012 Olympic men's basketball in prime time — from 7 p.m. until 11 p.m. — which delighted the 12 people who wanted to re-watch the USA-Argentina and USA-Spain games. Tonight's schedule looks like this …

7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.: The Dew Tour
Described on my cable guide as "Action from the season-ending Dew Tour championships in Las Vegas." Look, your guess is as good as mine. I'm guessing … extreme sports? Skateboarding? Or maybe … poker? I don't even want to Google it. I'd rather NOT know.

10 p.m. to 1 a.m.: CFL
Edmonton takes on British Columbia. Apparently this is live! Can I wager on this? Take back everything I said about the NBC Sports Network!4

Here's the point: You don't have a reason to watch NBCSN right now unless you love the NHL (R.I.P.), CFL, college football, college basketball, old Olympics games and events, hunting, darts, the Dew Network or something called Elk Fever (which actually ran in prime time on Tuesday night). They need to make a splash. Like, soon. They'll be bidding for those games like a drunk guy on eBay. Throw in Rupert Murdoch's new sports network (tentatively called "TAP TV"), Turner Sports (just paid $180 million for Bleacher Report, so anything's possible), CBS (I still can't find their cable sports channel on my DirecTV, but apparently it's on there) and ESPN (the Worldwide Leader of Bidding Everyone Else Up!), and you can count on someone egregiously overpaying.

You know those two guys in your fantasy auction who didn't realize all the elite running backs were gone until just DeMarco Murray was left, and suddenly they're locked in a holy war for him and ready to pay 40 bucks? That's how the Thursday-night auction will play out. Of course, if Goodell genuinely cared about the welfare of his players (he doesn't) AND wanted to make money (he does), then he'd push for an 18-week schedule that included the following four wrinkles:

1. Fourteen Thursday-night games total (including Thanksgiving). When you include the two Thanksgiving day games as well, that means every team would play once on Thursday and that's it.

2. Nobody would be allowed to play a Thursday game within 10 days of another game either way. So if the Niners and Seahawks played last night, they couldn't play on the Sunday before that game. And that would count as one of their byes. Instead of playing two games in 100 hours, you'd play one Thursday game within a 19-day cocoon of practice and rest.

3. Every team gets two bye weeks instead of one, giving us an extra week of football, fantasy football, Sunday Night Football, Monday Night Football and, of course, gambling. Know how every team looks fresher and crisper after a bye, even when they're being coached by Andy Reid or Norv Turner? That would happen twice, not once. And Thursday night's games wouldn't resemble the last 15 minutes of Rollerball anymore. The overall quality of play would improve, even if our marriages and relationships would be threatened in the process.

4. You might remember that 10 months ago one of my mailbag readers was pushing for an 18-week season in which every team was off for both bye weeks, calling it "Save the Marriage Weekends." I thought that was too radical but suggested the following compromise: Maybe they create two Über-Bye Weeks each season, with which something like 12 teams have byes and no game starting until 4 p.m. ET. If this were an election and the Uber-Bye Weeks were called something like "Prop 96," my family would be standing on a street corner waving picket signs for it and handing out buttons and fliers.

You mean there's a chance Dad wouldn't disappear for eight straight hours before emerging in a distracted haze and only partially paying attention to us throughout the Sunday-night game? And this would happen twice a year during the fall??? This is awesome!

So let's make that part of the plan. Goodell could sell it to his owners as, "Good news, I figured out a way to add another week of telecasts, including three more night games! We're gonna rake in more money AND keep the players safer! What do you think? What? [PAUSE.] This idea has been floating around for years? And I rejected it? Crap. Better late than never."

It would double as Roger Goodell's first victory in awhile, so naturally, there's little chance of it happening. Goodell seems determined to contradict himself as much as humanly possible, never worrying about the repercussions because being a commissioner is almost like being a tenured professor at this point. If we had commissioner elections and could potentially replace these guys every five or six years — with the fans, players and owners all getting one-third of the vote — maybe they'd care more about fans and players. And maybe they wouldn't get to stay as long as they wanted, with no checks and balances other than the written and spoken word.

For instance, Selig turned 78 years old in July — he's older than everyone in my father's family and everyone in my mother's family except my Uncle Devi and my Aunt Jen. Recently, Selig insisted that he'd retire when his contract ends in 2014, a bitter disappointment to everyone who wanted to follow a professional sports league run by someone IN HIS EIGHTIES. Are you kidding me??? I just turned 43 and had to switch all the font sizes on my Microsoft Word documents to 14-point.

Meanwhile, Gary Bettman will celebrate his 20th anniversary next February as (a) the NHL's commissioner, and (b) David Stern's mole with direct orders to turn hockey into a second-class sport. For all we know, he might be Brody and Stern might be Abu Nazir. Don't believe me? FOUR WORK STOPPAGES IN 20 YEARS!!!!! At this point, Bettman would lose any election to any human being with even rudimentary hockey connections unless it was the actor who played Wolf "The Dentist" Stansson in D2: The Mighty Ducks. And Stern enjoyed an unexpected revival in 2012, getting the league in perfect shape for his successor, Adam Silver … only Stern isn't retiring because he wants to break Pete Rozelle's "longest commissioner tenure" record of 30 years. That can't happen until 2014.

So if you're scoring at home, the same four commissioners will still be kicking two years from now. In a perfect world, they'd have to defend their records, debate worthy opponents, maybe even have one of those "Please proceed, Governor" moments to remind us why they were elected in the first place. But the world ain't perfect. And right now, we're stuck with a football commissioner who seems to be talking out of both sides of his mouth and every other orifice, too.

And look, I know the concept of electing sports commissioners is fundamentally impossible. It's a pipe dream through and through. But if Roger Goodell's job were threatened by an election, maybe he'd start thinking about semi-radical ideas like "an 18-week season with two byes." Maybe he wouldn't contradict himself so much. Maybe some of his players wouldn't hate him. Maybe he wouldn't have to bear-hug first-rounders on draft night to make it seem like he cared. Unfortunately, when you're working for the greediest group of owners in sports history and dealing with them day after day after day, it gets a little tougher. You end up thinking like them, and acting like them, and eventually, you become what you always despised.

Goodell's players don't want to be protected by him, nor do they want to be insulted by him any longer. They know about the concussion research that dates back to 2006, that Chris Nowinski and the Sports Legacy Institute were treated like nuisances, that nothing would have changed had the media not gotten involved. They know these 13 Thursday-night games were straight-out money grabs that threatened their collective well-being, no different from the Saints allegedly offering bounties for vicious plays. To paraphrase an American hero named Scott Fujita, we're disappointed in you, Roger. You're a hypocrite. And there's just no way around it.

juraitwaluzka · 10-22-2012, 01:51 PM

(10-22-2012 01:00 PM)AsylumGuido Wrote: I have every right to participate in any thread I wish. As for your forum bet, as much as your leaving the forum forever would please many around here, I have stated before my membership here is too important to me to ever risk losing it.

So you do admit that's it's possible that you are wrong about your 12-4 saints prediction or your assertion that the Falcons will never win a Super Bowl? Because usually it is your tendency to speak in absolutes that people find arrogant and off putting.

Obviously you must know you could be wrong and just dont want to admit it, otherwise there is no risk at all in accepting the bet. Either that or you are just a pussy.