The NFL is 'looking into it.' That's reassuring.
The NFL was swift and steadfast in its denial of any knowledge of the damning second Rice video.
"We have no knowledge of this," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told CBS following the AP report on Wednesday. "We are not aware of anyone in our office who possessed or saw the video before it was made public on Monday. We will look into it."
Meanwhile, a growing chorus of pundits, including Keith Olbermann, are calling for Goodell's head.
But when it comes down to Goodell's future, make no mistake: This is about money, not morals. This is about money, not morals. Guts, glory, and love of the game are all great — but pro sports are big-money business. It's that simple.
In order for Goodell to be ousted, 24 of the league's 32 owners — the people he essentially works for — must vote him out of office. With the NFL more profitable than ever before (the guy got paid $44 million in 2012), that seemed unlikely — at least until Wednesday.
If money rules everything in pro sports, corporate sponsors are something of a bellwether. Just a few months ago, we saw pressure crank up on the NBA to depose racist owner Donald Sterling after sponsors of his Los Angeles Clippers started jumping ship.
So the fact that this is the first public comment from a major NFL sponsor is a bad sign for Goodell.
