Adam ShifterSenior writer for ESPN4 minutes to read
What does Roger Goodell’s fourth contract extension mean for his NFL legacy?
Adam Schefter details Roger Goodell’s multi-year contract extension as NFL commissioner.
Owners Roger Goodell and the NFL are expected to finalize a multi-year contract extension for the commissioner at the owners’ meetings next week in Phoenix, league sources report to ESPN.
The NFL Compensation Committee is scheduled to present the proposed extension to the team owners during a special session Tuesday afternoon. Only one member from each team is allowed in that meeting.
Goodell’s extension has been in the works since last season, when the compensation committee was given full members permission to seek the extension, according to sources. The two sides have discussed a three-year extension, according to the sources, but no time period has been agreed upon yet.
The NFL declined to comment.
The economic framework of Goodell’s new deal is unknown but it is expected to be incentive-laden and, given the league’s financial success, the most lucrative deal ever awarded to any commissioner in any sport.
This is the fourth extension for Goodell, who took over for Paul Tagliabue on September 1, 2006; Previous extensions came in 2009, 2012, and 2017.
The process leading to this extension appears to have gone more smoothly than the previous one in 2017, when Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones threatened a lawsuit before the league eventually fined him for his legal threats. This transaction took effect in 2019.
Since then, Goodell has helped finalize a collective bargaining agreement that has brought a lasting labor peace and more than $100 billion worth of new media rights deals with CBS, NBC, Fox, ESPN and Amazon making the NFL the envy of other leagues. The NFL also has multi-billion dollar streaming deals with YouTube for its Sunday Ticket game package.
Additionally, the NFL has played its full slate of games during the COVID-19 pandemic, with players receiving 100% of their compensation, which was not lost on owners during this push to end Goodell’s extension, according to sources.
NFL owners also saw the value of their teams skyrocket during Goodell’s tenure as commissioner. The Minnesota Vikings — the last team to be sold before Goodell took over in 2006 — were sold for $600 million, while the Denver Broncos were sold for more than $4.5 billion last year.
However, Gödel’s tenure was not without controversy. Player safety, particularly concussions, was an ongoing issue, as was the league’s slow process of hiring minority team presidents, general managers, and coaches. More recently, the league’s handling of player discipline, as well as players’ social activity, has been part of Goodell’s legacy.
There was speculation that Goodell’s 2017 extension would be his last — that once he helped him negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement in 2020 and a media rights agreement in 2021, he would step down. But Goodell loves his job, the work, and league insiders say he’s not ready to step down.
Goodell is 64 years old and some believe this will be his final deal with the NFL. Former NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle quit his job when he was 63, and left Tagliabue when he was 65. Jodel is a known fitness fanatic and his stamina belies his age.
Once this extension is completed, the coming years are also expected to bring an increased focus on identifying potential candidates to be Goodell’s successor.
Internal candidates could include Head of Media and Business Brian Rollab, Executive Vice President / Football Operations Troy Vincent, Director of Football Operations Down Aponte, Executive Vice President / Club Business and League Events Peter O’Reilly and Director of Revenue Rennie Anderson.
Candidates outside the league office could include Chicago Bears president Kevin Warren and Los Angeles Rams chief of operations Kevin Dimoff.
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