Hall of Fame tight end and legendary coach Mike Ditka has become a bit of a troll in recent weeks.
Not in the living-under-the-bridge sense (although we haven’t seen his residence). In the Internet-era-saying-of-things-that-will-provoke-a-strong-reaction sense.
Ditka recently ordered Matthew Stafford and others off his lawn regarding the question of whether a quarterback should wear a baseball hat backward. Now, Ditka has offered his take on Commissioner Roger Goodell’s $44 million compensation by taking a shot at the Commander in Chief.
Ditka told the Chicago Sun-Times that he wasn’t shocked to learn that the Commissioner earns roughly 100 times more than President Barack Obama.
“Well, Goodell is doing a better job,” Ditka said. “He deserves it. No, I don’t have any problem with it. The owners pay him that. He’s the CEO of the NFL, and they feel he’s done a pretty darn good job to earn it.”
It’s not the first time Ditka has taken a swipe at Obama. Last year, Ditka called his decision not to run against Obama for an Illinois Senate seat in 2004 the “[b]iggest mistake I ever made.” Ditka explained that he “probably” would have won, and that Obama consequently “wouldn’t be in the White House.”
Regardless of any axe that Ditka may have to grind or political agenda to advance, Ditka’s right on one thing -- the league’s owners pay Goodell what they pay him. Ultimately, we’re all worth whatever someone will pay us for our services.
Would someone else do Goodell’s job for less than $44 million in a year? Thousands would. Few arguably would do it as well or better. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter.
It also doesn’t matter whether Goodell is or isn’t doing a better job than the President. Those who believe Goodell could do a better job than Obama should persuade Goodell to run for that office.
If they could convince him to take a 99-percent pay cut.