Time has named Roger Goodell as one of its finalists for “Person of the Year.” The magazine announces its selection on Wednesday.
The NFL commissioner managed such crises in the past year as the settlement of the concussion lawsuit against the league by former players, the controversy over the Redskins nickname, and the arrests of several high-profile players. The magazine justifies the nomination of Goodell by pointing out that “the National Football League commissioner whose leadership has been under great scrutiny this year as the league dealt with public incidents of domestic abuse by players such as Ray Rice, among other controversies.”
Other nominees include Vladimir Putin, who oversaw a successful Winter Olympics in Sochi, the Ferguson protestors, and pop star Taylor Swift.
Increasingly seen as an honor rather than an acknowledgment of the designee’s newsworthiness, the former “Man of the Year” cover has featured Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and the Ayatollah Khomeini.