Roger Goodell and Penn State is going all Penn State on us.
Just as the poobahs who run Happy Valley turned to ex-FBI director Louis Freeh to probe how the school handled the Jerry Sandusky affair, the NFL now plans to use the same tack in trying to sort out the mess that the Ray Rice saga has become.
Last night they announced they are calling in still another former FBI boss, Robert S. Mueller III, to lead an inquiry into how Goodell and his minions in the league offices handled the evidence in the Rice investigation.
Allow me to give Mueller this starting point.
It's been botched almost beyond belief.
The move to call in Mueller came hours after the Associated Press reported that a law enforcement source indicated he had sent NFL executives the explosive video showing the star Ravens running back cold-cocking his then-girlfriend in an elevator in an Atlantic City casino months ago. Goodell went on national TV the night before declaring that while league officials had requested all video in the case, they never got a reply and no one had seen the damning piece of tape before it exploded on the TMZ website.
But the AP source said the tape was sent five months ago, and he even provided a recording of a voicemail with a person in the NFL offices confirming the video had been received. The female confirms receipt of the video back on April 9, adding this damning review of the tape: "You're right. It's terrible."
Despite calls from many corners that he step down, it does not appear as if Goodell has any intention of doing so.
As odd as it sound, there is one thing that makes me believe Goodell in fact had not seen the tape.
It is that wrist-slap two-week suspension he doled out to Rice. Consider this: Eagles offensive tackle gets a four-game suspension because he didn't check some medicine he was taking with doctors and flunked a test for banned substances. Compare that with the Rice video, yet Rice gets half the suspension?
I find it hard to believe he could have gone that easy on the running back if he had actually seen the tape.
Then again, at this point there isn't much about this case that will surprise me.
And that includes a reversal of course by the league owners, with Goodell's head winding up on a platter.
The only thing these guys understand is money. The NFL is a billion-dollar enterprise. Goodell has lined their pockets since taking the helm from Paul Tagliabue.
The NFL just might be too big to fail. I don't see fans staying away from games, although they may stop buying team merchandise. TV ratings aren't likely to plummet, but there might be protesters outside games.
The league has a huge problem. One that one more ex-FBI official isn't going to be able to dig them out of.
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