Roger Goodell Roger S . Goodell ( born February 19 , 1959 ) is the Commissioner of the National Football League ( NFL ) , having been chosen to succeed the retiring Paul Tagliabue on August 8 , 2006 . He was chosen over four finalists for the position , winning a close vote on the fifth ballot before being unanimously approved by acclamation of the owners . He officially began his tenure on September 1 , 2006 , just prior to the beginning of the 2006 NFL season . Commentators have described him as " the most powerful man in sports " . Background . Goodell was born in Jamestown , New York , the son of the late United States Senator Charles Ellsworth Goodell , a Republican from New York , and the late Jean ( Rice ) Goodell of Buffalo , New York . He graduated from Bronxville High School where , as a three - sport star in football , basketball , and baseball , he captained all three teams as a senior and was named the school ' s athlete of the year . Injuries kept him from playing college football . Goodell is a 1981 graduate of Washington & Jefferson College in Washington , Pennsylvania with a degree in economics . NFL career . From intern to COO . Goodell ' s career in the NFL began in 1982 as an administrative intern in the league office in New York under then - Commissioner Pete Rozelle – a position secured through an extensive letter - writing campaign to the league office and each of its then 28 teams . In 1983 , he joined the New York Jets as an intern , but returned to the league office in 1984 as an assistant in the public relations department . In 1987 , Goodell was appointed assistant to the president of the American Football Conference ( Lamar Hunt ) , and under the tutelage of Commissioner Paul Tagliabue filled a variety of football and business operations roles , culminating with his appointment as the NFL ' s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in December 2001 . As the NFL ' s COO , Goodell took responsibility for the league ' s football operations and officiating , as well as supervised league business functions . He headed NFL Ventures , which oversees the league ' s business units , including media properties , marketing and sales , stadium development and strategic planning . Goodell was heavily involved in the negotiation of the collective bargaining agreement with the NFLPA and NFL owners during the summer of 2011 . He also played an extensive role in league expansion , realignment , and stadium development , including the launch of the NFL Network and securing new television agreements . NFL commissioner selection . Goodell ' s selection as Commissioner following the retirement of Paul Tagliabue came as no surprise , but it was not a fait accompli . Tagliabue initiated a substantive , wide ranging search for his successor , appointing a committee headed by owner Dan Rooney of the Pittsburgh Steelers . Goodell was one of five finalists , joining Gregg Levy , Frederick Nance , Robert Reynolds , and Mayo Shattuck III . With 22 votes from the owners being needed to make a choice , Goodell , who oddsmakers had installed as a prohibitive 2 : 5 favorite to be selected , only garnered 15 votes to Levy ' s 13 , with three votes scattered among the other candidates and the Oakland Raiders abstaining . On the second and third ballots , Goodell and Levy were the only candidates to receive votes ( Goodell 17 , Levy 14 ) . Goodell increased his lead to 21 – 10 after the fourth ballot , falling one vote shy of election , but on the fifth round of voting two owners swung their votes to him to achieve the necessary two - thirds majority ( Goodell 23 , Levy 8 ) . The Oakland Raiders abstained from the voting in each round . Goodell was chosen on August 8 , 2006 , to succeed Paul Tagliabue and assumed office on September 1 — the date Tagliabue set to leave office . Actions as commissioner . Goodell sees his main duty as commissioner as " protecting the shield " - - as he puts it ( a reference to the NFL ' s shield logo ) , protecting the integrity of the game and making it safer . However , some of his actions to " protect the shield " have been met with some criticism . Player conduct . In April 2007 , following a year of significant scandal surrounding some NFL players ' actions off - the - field , Goodell announced a new NFL Personal Conduct Policy . Tennessee Titans cornerback Pacman Jones and Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry were the first two players to be suspended under the new policy , and Chicago Bears defensive lineman Tank Johnson was suspended months later due to his conduct involving weapon ownership and drunk driving . On August 31 , 2007 , Goodell suspended Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson for five games and fined him US $ 100 , 000 , and suspended New England Patriots safety Rodney Harrison four games without pay , after they admitted the use of banned substances for medical purposes and to accelerate healing , respectively . The league indicated to Wilson that his more severe penalty was because they held " people in authority in higher regard than people on the field . " Goodell has also imposed suspensions on the following players for conduct : In addition to suspensions , Goodell has also fined players for on - field misconduct . For example , on October 19 , 2010 , the NFL handed out fines to Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison , Falcons cornerback Dunta Robinson , and New England Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather after they were involved in controversial hits the previous Sunday . Goodell released a memo to every team in the league stating that " It is clear to me that further action is required to emphasize the importance of teaching safe and controlled techniques , and of playing within the rules . " The NFL ' s reaction to the hits was itself controversial and Goodell came under criticism from players like Troy Polamalu , who felt he had assumed too much control and power over punishment towards players and was making wrong decisions . Spygate . On September 13 , 2007 , Goodell disciplined the New England Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick after New England attempted to videotape the defensive signals of the New York Jets on September 9 . Belichick was fined the league maximum of $ 500 , 000 and the team itself was fined US $ 250 , 000 and the loss of their first round 2008 draft pick . Goodell came down hard on the Patriots because he felt Belichick ' s authority over football operations ( Belichick is effectively the Patriots ' general manager as well as head coach ) was such that his decisions were " properly attributed " to the Patriots as well . Goodell said he considered suspending Belichick , but decided against it because he felt fining them and stripping them of a draft pick were " more effective " than a suspension . 2011 NFL lockout . Outside of player conduct , Goodell is also known for his work in the 2011 NFL lockout . Prior to the start of the 2011 NFL season , Goodell worked with NFL owners and the NFLPA on settling the NFL lockout which ran from March 11 to August 5 . During the lockout , at the request of some NFL teams , he held conference calls with season ticket holders where he discussed the collective bargaining agreement and conducted question - and - answer sessions on various NFL topics . Bountygate . In March of 2012 , Goodell revealed evidence that players and coaches on the New Orleans Saints had instituted a bounty program in which Saints defensive players were paid bonuses for deliberately knocking opposing players out of games . Then - defensive coordinator Gregg Williams administered the program , and as many as 27 Saints defensive players were involved . Later that month , Goodell handed down some of the harshest penalties in NFL history . He suspended Williams , who had left to become defensive coordinator of the St . Louis Rams , indefinitely ; Williams will not be able to apply for reinstatement until at least the end of the 2012 season . Goodell also suspended head coach Sean Payton for the entire 2012 season , general manager Mickey Loomis for eight games and assistant head coach Joe Vitt for six games . Additionally , the Saints themselves were fined a league maximum $ 500 , 000 and stripped of their second round draft picks in 2012 and 2013 . Goodell was particularly angered that those involved in the program lied about it during two separate league investigations of the program . Sanctions for players were not handed down at the time , and Goodell stated he would refrain for penalizing players until the NFLPA completed its investigation of the affair . 2012 referee lockout . By June 2012 , the league and the NFL Referees Association had not yet come to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement , thus failing to resolve a labor dispute . Accordingly , the NFL has locked out the regular NFL game officials , and thus have opened the 2012 season with replacement referees . These replacement officials consist of low - level college and high school officials . None are current Division I college referees since the league wants to protect them from union backlash and to let them continue working their scheduled games during the concurrent college football season . In addition , many of the top Division I conferences are barring their officials from becoming replacements anyway because they employ current and former NFL referees as officiating supervisors . Despite Goodell stating during the preseason that he believed that the replacement officials will " do a credible job " , the inexperience of the replacement referees has generated criticism by writers and players . Referencing Goodell ' s aforementioned other actions as commissioner , the NFLPA issued a letter after Week 2 to the owners to end the dispute , saying : Personal life . Goodell is married to former Fox News Channel anchor Jane Skinner and they have twin daughters . He has four brothers ; among them are Tim , who works for the Hess Corporation ; and Michael , long - time partner of Jack Kenny , creator of the short - lived NBC series " The Book of Daniel " . The Webster family on the show was loosely based on the Goodell family .