In response to last night’s report from FOXSports.com regarding Commissioner Roger Goodell’s remarks to the media following Sunday’s opening address at the annual Rookie Symposium, NFL V.P. of football communications Michael Signora has contacted us with a clarification.
Alex Marvez reported that Goodell said he intends to meet with Young soon, and that Goodell acknowledged a suspension of the Titans quarterback is “unlikely.”
For starters, Signora said that Goodell and Young won’t necessarily be meeting in the near future. Signora points out that Goodell said he plans to “visit” with Young at some point in the next few weeks, and that Goodell intended this to include speaking with Young by phone or some other means not involving a face-to-face get-together.
Signora also said that Goodell did not state that a suspension of Young is “unlikely.” Instead, Goodell reiterated that the Personal Conduct Policy applies to repeat offenders, and that first-time offenders generally avoid a suspension.
The discrepancies frankly seem minor. As to the first one, “visit” fairly can be interpreted as “meet,” especially since Goodell later used the phrase “sit down” when talking about his eventual communications with Young. As to the second, while Goodell didn’t expressly say that a suspension is unlikely, he implied it.
So why was a clarification issued? Our guess is that, for whatever reason, someone from the Titans expressed concern regarding Goodell’s comments.