Goodell Confident Bounties Are A Thing Of The Past

At a news conference in Chicago on Thursday Roger Goodell addressed bounty gate and the penalties that were handed down saying he thinks the penalties “speak very loudly.” This has made Goodell confident that bounty systems have been wiped out of the NFL.

"“I heard that from our clubs, from our personnel. They recognize it’s not part of the game. It doesn’t need to be part of the game. And I don’t think it’s going to be an issue going forward.”"

Jonathan Vilma, the most severely penalized of the New Orleans Saints players has currently filed a defamation suit against the NFL, challenging Goodell’s authority to levy such penalties. Vilma was suspended for an entire season without pay.

That’s just one of many lawsuits brought against the NFL this offseason. The NFLPA is also currently suing the NFL for collusion of a “secret salary cap” in a uncapped offseason that they claim cost the NFL players over $1 billion.

"“I think one of the things that’s made the NFL great is we’ve solved our own problems,” Goodell said. “Several of those things are collectively bargained, which we’ve just concluded a 10-year agreement, and they’re in the collective bargaining agreement. I believe that our process has worked. We’ve modified those processes, even outside of the collective bargaining, to make them responsible and responsive to their needs. But we do want to make sure that at every point we uphold the standards that our fans expect.”"

Roger Goodell was in Chicago alongside Mayor Rahm Emanuel at Soldier Field to recognize the stadium for becoming a LEED-certified building, which means it is environmentally friendly.