RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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ATLANTA – NFL owners zipped into town on Wednesday and handled their business with all the efficiency of a two-minute drill.
They unanimously approved the sale of the Seattle Seahawks to Vinod, Neeru and Neal Khosla for a record $9.6 billion. They punted the Pro Bowl . They instituted a three-strikes policy that, in the name of safety, will result in an automatic one-game suspension for three violations of the most egregious penalties. They announced a new Behavioral Health Network to be launched in conjunction with the NFL Players Association to beef up mental health resources.
The whole meeting took less than four hours. They checked the boxes, then bolted.
Now, if Roger Goodell can only operate with such speed in closing the case on disgraced San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York that suddenly landed on his desk this week.
York, 46, pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges – plea-bargained down from an initial charge of “engaging in prostitution” – after an arrest at a trailer park in East Palestine, Ohio, on Sunday.
No, York wasn’t among the owners seen on site at the special session.
Yet his presence was surely felt.
Coincidentally, the police bodycam footage of York’s arrest , obtained by The California Post, dropped about the time his fellow owners were winding down their meetings late in the afternoon. USA TODAY Sports has also requested a copy of the footage.
And when the NFL Commissioner met with reporters for a brief gaggle after the meetings – which allowed owners to escape without much, if any, media interaction – the first question was about York. Goodell is determining the expected discipline coming for York under a conduct policy that purportedly holds owners to a “higher standard” than players and others in the NFL universe.
“It’s being reviewed under the personal conduct policy,” Goodell said. “We will do that. When there’s something to be reported, we’ll do so.”
That was it, quick and to the point.
Of course, no decision on York – who on the police video appeared shocked and was docile without any resistance as he was handcuffed – was expected on Wednesday that would have taken shine off the christening of the newest members of the NFL owners club. And anyway, it’s typical for Goodell to not say anything more than a basic acknowledgement in sticky situations like this.
Still, it’s worth nothing that Goodell handed the late Jim Irsay a six-game suspension and $500,000 fine on the very day in 2014 that the Indianapolis Colts owner pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated. In Irsay’s case, it took more than six months for the court case to be resolved, allowing Goodell ample time to consider discipline in the interim.
In York’s case, it came so fast – at least as it pertains to the arrest, plea bargain, one day in lock-up and widespread humiliation.
MORE: For 49ers' Jed York, humiliation may hurt more than NFL punishment | Opinion
Now, with the legal case quickly resolved, Goodell needs to quickly decide on the level of discipline, and not only so it won’t hang over York’s franchise as it makes the long trek to Australia for one of the NFL's showcase international games in Week 1.
No, as coach Kyle Shanahan maintained, York’s situation doesn’t tangibly affect the football mission. Fred Warner will still chase down ball-carriers, sideline-to-sideline. Christian McCaffrey will still sting defenses via the ground or air. George Kittle is still, well, that baddie dude.
Yet striking closure will be good for the optics of the team – and a league that is always dealing with one fire or another.
Then there’s another reason: compassion for York.
For everything that has happened fast, I’d suspect that whatever issues that exist in his life that led him to the predicament that came wrapped with his arrest, didn’t happen overnight. If discipline involves time away from the team in the form of a suspension – and this helps in dealing with matters that have nothing to do with football – perhaps it will be a blessing in disguise for York.
After all, no punishment from Goodell may be harsher for York than the humiliation.
Follow Bell on X: @JarrettBell
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NFL, Roger Goodell have good reasons to quickly rule on Jed York punishment | Opinion
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