Last Tuesday, the league abruptly announced the outcome of Mary Jo White’s investigation of Dolphins owner Stephen Ross. On some upcoming Tuesday (or another day of the week), the NFL will be announcing the outcome of Mary Jo White’s investigation of Commanders owner Daniel Snyder. (Unless they brush it all under the rug. But we know that, when it comes to the Commanders, they would never do such a thing.)
For now, Commissioner Roger Goodell isn’t saying much. In a gaggle with reporters on Tuesday (kudos to the reporters on the scene for pushing to talk to him at a time when the powers-that-be presumably preferred he not speak, given that there was no press conference), Goodell was asked about Snyder’s status.
“As far as his status, as we all know, there’s an ongoing investigation, a congressional investigation as well as our investigation into those issues,” Goodell said, via Mark Maske of the Washington Post. “As we get to resolution on that, Dan and I will discuss where he participates.”
Snyder currently is not involved in the day-to-day operations of the team, supposedly. Reporting from the Washington Times has contradicted Goodell’s past claims that Snyder has not resumed his prior role with the organization, prompting Goodell to add the important safe-harbor phrase “to the best of my knowledge” to his testimony to the House Oversight Committee regarding Snyder’s current activities.
So when will White, who is investigating Tiffani Johnston’s claims of misconduct committed by Snyder, allegations of financial improprieties, and whatever else may have come to her attention during the process (e.g., whether Snyder is defying the limits placed on his involvement with the team), conclude her probe?
“We don’t force timelines on those,” Goodell said.
The Oversight Committee has tried to force a more aggressive timeline on Snyder, with an effort to question him delayed by more than a month after his lawyer refused to accept service of a subpoena -- and after Snyder remained physically beyond the reach of Congressional process servers. The NFL opted for silence as Snyder dodged a subpoena. Goodell remained that way on Tuesday.
“We were not party to that,” Goodell said. “We did not participate in that in any way.”
Obviously. But that doesn’t mean the league should have no opinion regarding the fact that an owner hid on his yacht for weeks in order to avoid being legally required to show up and answer important questions regarding years of alleged (or actual) misbehavior in the workplace Snyder ultimately owns and operates. At a time when much is being said about whether Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has “undermined the public’s confidence in the integrity and reputation of the NFL,” the NFL continues to ignore the manner in which Snyder is doing precisely that.
