TIME Magazine revealed its eight finalists for its Person of the Year award, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is among them. Goodell was named a finalist along with Vladimir Putin, Taylor Swift, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Alibaba founder Jack Ma, Iraqi Kurdish president Masoud Barzani, the Ferguson protestors, and the Ebola caregivers.
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According to media reports, candidates are selected based on the perception of their "influence on the news over the past year." Goodell has certainly been in the news plenty of times during 2014, although almost every instance of it was for negative reasons.
To be fair, he has led the NFL during a period of unmatched growth, and the league is clearly dominant among the four major sports (and all sports, for that matter) in America. Each new year brings in record revenue totals for the league, the television revenue is ever-growing, and the Super Bowl is annually the most-watched broadcast on television.
However, his influence over the news this year largely stemmed from his perceived mishandling of nearly every important social issue that faced the NFL. He tried to sweep the Ray Rice incident under the rug, only to reverse course after a loud public outcry. He may have abused his power in several disciplinary instances, including the Adrian Peterson case. Goodell also oversaw the settlement in the widely-publicized concussion lawsuit by dozens of former players, which many considered a paltry sum for such a serious issue. Oh, and there have been several more domestic violence reports involving NFL players as the season has worn on.
Goodell has caught criticism throughout the year both from the media and those within the NFL. However, despite the many, many calls for his resignation, he has soldiered on. Still, he must be hoping that he does not actually win this award, as it will likely be an excuse for his detractors to rehash his every mistake.
Below, you can see Keith Olbermann's thoughts on whether Goodell should have resigned.
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