Former Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer says the way NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell deals with players is reminiscent of the tactics employed by the secret police of Nazi Germany.
“I think the way Mr. Goodell has handled this, the way he’s kind of using his power, is like the kind of a Gestapo-type situation, controlling the players, not letting the judicial system do its work,” Toomer said Wednesday, in comments that were repeated on ESPN Radio Thursday morning. “It rubs a lot of players the wrong way, and that’s why you see a lot of players now lashing out at Mr. Goodell.”
Toomer is far from the first person on the players’ side of the debate to offer a harsh assessment of Goodell, and it’s becoming clear as the lockout wears on that many NFL players don’t have a lot of respect for the commissioner.
But Toomer’s comments go far beyond what any player has said about Goodell previously. It’s one thing for Derrick Mason to call Goodell a joke. It’s quite another for Toomer to liken Goodell to a Nazi.