Regardless of whether the NFL does, or doesn’t, finalize the Roger Goodell contract extension in the coming days, weeks, or whatever, the league clearly has a Jerry Jones problem. And some in league circles fear that the Goodell deal won’t mark the end of Jones’ efforts to create trouble for Goodell and the league, but the beginning.
Whatever comes next, Jones already has done enough to anger more than a few owners, some of whom have become intent on taking some sort of disciplinary action against Jones.
A common response to the stories regarding potentially significant discipline of Jones is this: “If they didn’t do it to Al Davis, they won’t do it to Jerry Jones.” As one source with knowledge of the situation recently explained it to PFT, the league may choose to be particularly aggressive with Jones in order to prevent him from becoming another Al Davis.
And the effort may extend beyond the things said and done by Jones in connection with his effort to block the Goodell deal. Other past incidents, either forgotten or overlooked or previously unexplored will now potentially become fair game.
As one source explained it on Sunday, Donald Sterling lost the Clippers due to the making of racially inappropriate comments in private. On Friday, a quote emerged from Jones that wasn’t fully in Sterling’s neighborhood but definitely in the same zip code.
So what’s next? What other incident or allegation from the past will emerge at a time when the NFL may be looking for a way to bolster a case for conduct detrimental to the welfare of the game?
Jones has repeatedly scoffed at the possibility of facing an assault on his status as an owner. While that remains a very remote possibility, the NFL’s Constitution & Bylaws contain a procedure for imposing significant sanctions. If enough owners become intent on doing so, and if enough evidence can be harvested to support the case, the NFL’s biggest boardroom drama in recent years could get even more interesting.