Goodell drops the ball on domestic violence, again

If you read my first blog installment for Issues in Sports, you're very much aware of my views on the NFL, and more specifically, Roger Goodell.

So it comes as no surprise that yet again, I believe Roger Goodell came up short.

Domestic violence -- and the NFL's handling of the subject -- is a derisive topic among pundits and fans alike. It's commonly believed the NFL has handled both the awareness against domestic violence and it's response to violent offenders poorly.

Before suspending former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice indefinitely, Goodell handed him a meager two-game suspension. Later, video surfaced of Rice striking his then-fiancee Janay Rice, prompting Goodell to up the punishment.

Goodell's received criticism for his handling of Rice's punishment and his uneven system of punishing players. It's prompted groups such as UltraViolet to call for his firing and produce an advertisement admonishing the NFL's treatment. The league as a whole has spent a significant amount of money partnering with the "No More" campaign to release Public Service Announcements on the issue.

Still, criticism remained. Goodell had the opportunity to discuss the situation two different times leading up to the Super Bowl. He failed to do so on both occasions.

Goodell wouldn't address the issues at his Friday press conference before the Super Bowl, a presser in which he took his fair share of difficult questions. It wasn't Goodell's finest hour, but he had a chance for redemption.

NBC Sports anchor Bob Costas said in the Sunday pre-game production leading up to the Super Bowl that Goodell was offered a chance to speak candidly in a 1-on-1 interview, and turned it down.

Somehow, I'm not surprised that he'd turn down an opportunity to add clarity to such an important issue on the biggest day of the year in the NFL.

This is the same Goodell that told reporters he is "available to the media almost every day of my job, professionally," according to Thinking Progress. And this is an interview with NBC, which traditionally takes it fairly easy on the NFL and which I've criticized via Twitter for its terminology and treatment of concussion issues.

It's disappointing that we as consumers of the NFL still don't have an answer, or at least a definitive statement from its leader, I'd go as far to say that because of Goodell's evasiveness, the NFL failed in the domestic violence category leading up to the Super Bowl.

And so too did the coverage.