The NFL can’t suspend players during a lockout, but they will be keeping an eye on them.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell attempted to clarify the league’s stance on the personal conduct policy during his press conference Tuesday.
“The Personal Conduct Policy continues. It applies to everybody in the league. I don’t know how it would apply to the players under this circumstance, but it’s something that I feel strongly about, that we owe to our fans,” Goodell said.
So the league won’t be be able to enforce the policy during a lockout, but they will be keeping track of infractions with an eye towards enforcement after the work stoppage is over.
This is consistent with what the league told Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com on the matter. Still, Goodell’s answer left room for interpretation. The league plans for the conduct policy to apply, but they also planed to have a labor agreement in place by now.
The league and the NFLPA* may have to negotiate the particulars of how the conduct policy will be enforced for infractions that occur during a work stoppage as part of a new CBA.