NFL Commissioner Goodell Signs New Contract Worth Up To $200 Million

Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones implied that Commissioner Roger Goodell’s contract extension with the NFL would not get done prior t0 the NFL’s ownership meetings on December 13th.

Jerry Jones missed the actual date, by a week.

According to multiple reports, the NFL Compensation Committee completed and Roger Goodell signed, an extension that will keep him as NFL commissioner.

Here is the memo, obtained by the MMQB’s Albert Breer, sent by the compensation committee to NFL owners announcing the deal:

Dear Owners,

Please see the below message sent on behalf of the Compensation Committee.

All,

In recent days, we have spoken with each of you individually regarding the status of the negotiations to extend Commissioner Goodell’s employment contract. In the course of those discussions, we have reviewed with you the details of the contract extension. Our Committee unanimously supports the contract and believes that it is fully consistent with “market” compensation and the financial and other parameters outlined to the owners at our May 2018 meeting, as well as in the best interests of ownership. We also have expressed in those conversations our strong and unanimous belief that we should proceed to sign the agreement now, consistent with the unanimous May resolution and to avoid further controversy surrounding this issue. We are pleased to report that there is a nearly unanimous consensus among the ownership in favor of signing the contract extension now.

The deal was first reported by Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio.

The contract details of Goodell’s deal are rather incredible. According to a report from Charles Gasparino of Fox Business, “The contract extension carries a five-year term that will keep Goodell in place as commissioner through 2024. Goodell will earn a guaranteed annual salary of $3.5 million, though he could earn as much as $50 million through incentives.”

Meaning, despite the NFL experiencing unprecedented declines in television ratings and in-game attendance, the NFL has just signed Roger Goodell to a deal that could be worth up to $200 million.

Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones had tried for months to delay, devalue, or derail Goodell’s contract extension. Going so far as to enlist the support of Papa John’s CEO John Schnatter, who publicly criticized Goodell’s leadership over the commissioner’s response to the anthem protests.

Those efforts, in addition to Jones’ behind-the-scenes lobbying campaign, appear to have been ineffective.