It's not enough for Roger Goodell to win this battle with Jerry Jones. He must assert his authority
By David Moore , Staff Writer Contact David Moore on Twitter: @DavidMooreDMN
When the NFL does hit Jerry Jones with the check for the legal costs of his insurrection, it should come as no surprise.
No one, not even Jones, can stage an unsuccessful palace coup and come away unscathed. He's lucky to live in a time when the consequence of failure is no longer imprisonment, torture or the command "off with his head.''
Commissioner Roger Goodell and the owners will settle for a payment believed to be more than $2 million.
The New York Times reported Monday that Goodell is poised to demand that the Cowboys' owner pay for his attempt to derail the commissioner's contract extension and his support of Ezekiel Elliott's battle to overturn his suspension.
Sources say this impending action is to recoup the legal costs other clubs incurred while chipping in to ward off these threats. This remedy has been part of the league's constitution and by-laws since the late 1990s and been applied in the past. One source said the NFL's finance committee and a group of other owners have been consulted.
Fun fact: Four members of the finance committee -- Atlanta's Arthur Blank, New England's Robert Kraft, Houston's Bob McNair and Kansas City's Clark Hunt -- are also on the compensation committee that Jones threatened to sue in November.
A spokesman for the NFL had no comment. Rich Dalrymple, the Cowboys' senior vice president of public relations, said the club had no comment.
The NFL Players Association helped cover the costs of Elliott's legal challenge to his six-game suspension. Jones' support was vocal -- he vociferously defended the running back and questioned the integrity of the NFL's investigation publicly -- while wielding whatever power he could behind the scenes.
The bulk of this reimbursement will be tied to Jones' high-profile attempt to block the five-year extension that can pay Goodell up to $200 million.
Ninety percent of this extension is linked to incentives. Blank, the chair of the compensation committee, has said that Jones' opposition had nothing to do with the structure of the deal that will carry Goodell into March 2024.
Jones was careful with his words at the Four Seasons Resort in Las Colinas when the contract was approved, wanting to assure colleagues and fans that whether they disagree with him or not, he always has the best interests of the sport in mind.
Goodell's response?
"My relationship with Jerry has been great,'' he said on that December afternoon. "We don't always agree. I'm not paid to agree and he's not paid to agree with me.
"We have our differences, but we work together to try to solve those differences and address them in a way that is responsible. I think we have done that.''
Jones was standing in the same room as Goodell when the commissioner made his comments. He was asked if he took Jones' resistance personally?
"Do I look like I take it personally?'' Goodell asked. "Jerry, do I look like I take it personally?
"No is the answer to that question.''
That doesn't mean he can ignore what Jones tried to do.
It's not enough for Goodell to win the battle. He must support the owners who stood behind him. He must assert his authority.
If Goodell doesn't take action, what's to keep Jones or another owner from coming after him on another issue down the road? Compassion is too often mistaken for weakness in these matters.
Goodell doesn't have to destroy or humiliate the Cowboys' owner, but there must be a proportional response. This approach makes the most sense. If the roles were reversed, Jones would do the same.
As failed coup d'états go, it's a small price to pay.
