New Orleans not ready to roll out welcome mat for Roger Goodell
BY KEVIN MCGILL Associated Press
Sunday, January 27, 2013
1/27/13 at 4:04 AM
NEW ORLEANS - An effigy of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell dangles from the front porch of a New Orleans home that is otherwise festively decorated with Saints paraphernalia.
With restaurants and bars gearing up for an influx of Super Bowl XLVII visitors, the "Refuse to Serve Roger Goodell" page on Facebook had 107 likes as of Friday.
A portrait of Goodell covers the bull's-eye on the dart board at Parkview Tavern.
And floats in the unabashedly lowbrow Krewe du Vieux parade in the French Quarter last weekend displayed larger-than-life likenesses of Goodell in acts that defy polite description.
New Orleans is celebrating the return of Saints coach Sean Payton after a season of NFL banishment as a result of the "bountygate" scandal - when the team ran a pay-for-hits program. But Goodell, who suspended Payton and other current and former Saints players and coaches last year for their roles in the system, is being ridiculed here with a vehemence usually reserved for the city's scandal-scarred politicians.
Some of Goodell's critics say the disarray resulting from what they believe were unfair suspensions led to the Saints' 7-9 performance this year - and a missed chance to make history.
"We had a real shot of being the first team in history to host the Super Bowl in our own stadium," Parkview Tavern owner Kathy Anderson said. "He can't give that back to us."
Goodell suspended the coaches and players after an investigation found the Saints had a performance pool offering cash rewards for key plays, including big hits. The player suspensions eventually were overturned, but the coaches served their punishments.
Mayor Mitch Landrieu is among those saying that people in this city, known for its hospitality and history, should mind their manners and remember the not-too-distant past.
"Roger Goodell has been a great friend to New Orleans, and it's a fact that he's one of the people instrumental to making sure that the Saints stayed here after Hurricane Katrina," Landrieu said in a statement. It was a reference to the days after the storm, when 80 percent of the city was underwater and the damaged Superdome became a shelter for thousands of the displaced.
Then-Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and his second-in-command, Goodell, are credited with working to keep the team from abandoning New Orleans for San Antonio.
"If not for Roger Goodell, we would not have this Super Bowl," Landrieu added. "And we will need him since we want to host another one."
Original Print Headline: An unwelcome mat for Goodell
NFL playoff schedule
Wild-card round
Jan. 5
Houston 19, Cincinnati 13
Green Bay 24, Minnesota 10
Jan. 6
Baltimore 24, Indianapolis 9
Seattle 24, Washington 14
Divisional round
Jan. 12
Baltimore 38, Denver 35, 2OT
San Francisco 45, Green Bay 31
Jan. 13
Atlanta 30, Seattle 28
New England 41, Houston 28
Conference championships
Jan. 20
NFC: San Francisco 28, Atlanta 24
AFC: Baltimore 28, New England 13
Super Bowl
Feb. 3
At New Orleans
Baltimore vs. San Francisco, 5:30 p.m. (KOTV-6, KYAL-97.1)
Associated Images:
A photo of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is seen on a dartboard inside the Parkview Tavern in New Orleans on Friday. New Orleans is celebrating the return of New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton after a season's NFL banishment. GERALD HERBERT/Associated Press
|
