|
Originally Posted by backrow
The Chosen One?
By Charles Robinson, Yahoo! Sports
March 20, 2006
More Tagliabue – What will be his legacy?
If the NFL were run like the mafia, with an organizational chart that flowed south – from the boss to the fists that enforce his rule – we would already know the name of Paul Tagliabue's successor.
Meet Roger Goodell – the Frank Nitti to Tagliabue's Al Capone.
There are bound to be an array of candidates when it comes to the next NFL commissioner. But when Tagliabue made his retirement plans official on Monday, the No. 1 spot on the list of replacements had already been filled.
Really, Goodell has had a lock on the position for the last few years. Run your finger along his career arc under Tagliabue – retrace a bit from his current status as the league's chief operating officer – and you will find a man who has run the NFL gamut from a business and operational standpoint.
The history of titles on his resume reads like a telephone index of a Fortune 500 corporation: COO; V.P. of Operations, Director of International Development; Executive V.P. of Business and Football Development … all the way back to the internship that started it all in 1982. Add them up and you have arguably the most experienced business and development mind in pro football not named Tagliabue. He's a guy who, if you were to compile a ranking of the most powerful people in the world of sports, would make a strong run at the top 25.
That's remarkable territory for someone who has never owned a team, been a commissioner, headed a players union or lorded over one of the billion-dollar apparel or television corporations that pump blood into the sports industry. Then again, it's practically impossible to comb through the NFL's major business dealings over the last decade and not find Goodell's fingerprints:
He helped whip NFL Properties into shape, creating arguably the most successful licensing empire in all of pro sports.
He served as Tagliabue's point man for expansion and league realignment over the last decade.
He was intimately involved in the recent record television deals and multiple facilities upgrades for NFL teams.
He was a driving force in helping Tagliabue further his global vision and played a lead role in last season's regular-season game in Mexico City.
At one time or another, he's been a key player in the sale of franchises (such as the recent transfer of the Minnesota Vikings from Red McCombs to Zygi Wilf) and the league's scheduling, officiating, marketing, special events, sponsorships, strategic planning and charities.
He also participated in the negotiation of the new collective bargaining agreement and, in the larger picture, has been one of the pillars that helped Tagliabue's administration achieve lasting labor peace.
Just brushing over those high points, Goodell looks like an extension of Tagliabue, and that's no coincidence. Extensively versed in both league business and league politics, he's a link to the Pete Rozelle administration.
Goodell graduated from Washington and Jefferson College in Pennsylvania (he was summa cum laude) and first entered the NFL as an intern in 1982. By the age of 28, he had impressed enough in the league office to earn an appointment from Rozelle, who named him assistant to AFC president Lamar Hunt in 1987.
By the early 1990s, Goodell was considered one of the league's rising administrative talents and had cracked the top seven of the NFL's hierarchical chart by 1993 (when he was only 34). Right about that time, he became Tagliabue's right-hand man on financial and development aspects – a position he has maintained ever since.
Soon enough, Goodell could follow Tagliabue's footsteps right to the top.
Three other possible candidates for the NFL's next commissioner:
Rich McKay – A former attorney and graduate of Princeton and Stetson, McKay has long been bandied about by the media as the league's next commissioner – though the Atlanta Falcons' general manager has never come out and said publicly that he aspires to the position. But he's held in high regard in almost every league circle, and his league experience is a good fit. The son of former USC and Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach John McKay, Rich worked his way up to the rank of GM with the Buccaneers and helped transform one of the most moribund franchises in the NFL into a Super Bowl champion. He has also served on multiple league committees, and has long been a co-chairman on the NFL's highly esteemed competition committee. McKay has also been a Tagliabue confidant for many years.
Dick Cass – A longtime attorney and graduate of Princeton and Yale, Cass has been intimately involved in NFL matters since the early 1980s, serving as counsel to individual owners and to the entire league for collective bargaining purposes. His background is very much like that of Tagliabue, who was a chief outside counsel for the NFL for several years before becoming commissioner. Like Tagliabue, Cass has vast expertise in the matters of sports business. He was named the Baltimore Ravens' president in 2004 and is held in high esteem by such big-market owners as Jerry Jones and Dan Snyder. He also was instrumental in helping hammer out the revenue sharing plan that cleared the way for the signing of the new collective bargaining agreement.
Condoleezza Rice – A former provost of Stanford who has a Ph.D. in political science, the Secretary of State has indicated a serious interest in becoming the NFL commissioner. The daughter of a high school athletic director and football coach, Rice grew up an avid Cleveland Browns fan and maintained an infatuation with the NFL over the years. She likely won't be a candidate because of her lack of experience or familiarity with league affairs, but she has impressive credentials nonetheless. Beyond her term in Washington, D.C., Rice has been awarded multiple honorary doctorates from several law schools, while also serving on the Board of Directors of several major corporations, including Chevron, Charles Schwab and J.P. Morgan.
|