Worse Than Tiger Woods

[n david]

Knew I read this on ESPN ... just had to look a bit.

Two articles, both highlighting Goodell's quick action against black players and his slow, lazy stroll to some action against a white, 2-time Super Bowl, MVP QB.

The first:

Certainly there were factors with Adam "Pacman" Jones and Michael Vick -- the most high-profile measuring sticks of how the NFL can enforce its code of conduct -- that prompted the commissioner to dole out punishments before they were convicted in a court of law. For openers, Jones had a long history of previous arrests and other run-ins and Vick had already been indicted in his dogfighting case; Roethlisberger hasn't been charged yet. But the only factor that matters to those African-Americans keeping close tabs on the Roethlisberger case is this: The commissioner didn't wait to meet with Jones and Vick when they had criminal investigations hanging over their heads. Every time a prominent black athlete is involved in a legal situation, it seems as if the long, lawful arm of Goodell is ready to react.

The commissioner announced Jones' season-long suspension in 2007 less than two months after he was allegedly involved in an altercation and shooting outside of a Las Vegas strip club -- which was two months before Jones was officially charged by Vegas police and a week after Goodell brought Jones into his office for one of his infamous sit-downs. Jones accepted a plea deal for the Vegas incident in November 2007, which resulted in a suspended one-year prison sentence, probation and community service.

Source 1

Second article:

Goodell is going to face even more scrutiny for his handling of the matter. He's been known to punish players in the past without the legal process running its course -- such as Adam "Pacman" Jones and Larry Johnson -- so he needs to show consistency in how he wields his personal conduct policy in this matter. It would be one thing if Roethlisberger had only one issue hovering over his head. Two claims of sexual assault should put him squarely within Goodell's crosshairs this time.

Source 2

The longer this drags on without an announcement, the worse it looks for Goodell. Regardless of a charge or the absence of such, clearly Ben has issues that need to be addressed and at minimum a seat on the bench for a few games - not just preseason games, either.