Roger Goodell on Harrison Butker's comments: NFL community has "diversity of opinion and thought"
Last week, the NFL issued a statement regarding comments made earlier this month by Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker at a commencement ceremony. On Wednesday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell added nothing new to what was previously said.
“His views are not those of the NFL as an organization," the league said last week. "The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion. Which only makes our league stronger.”
Speaking at the league meetings in Nashville, Goodell said (via Tom Pelissero of NFL Media), “We have over 3,000 players. We have executives around the league. They have diversity of opinions and thoughts just like America does. That’s something we treasure."
He's not inaccurate. It meshes with what we said last week. Free speech allows Butker to say things that others will disagree with. Those who disagree are allowed to say so.
No one is being "canceled" for it. Complaining about cancel culture is just part of the grievance culture that depends on always finding something to be upset about. And plenty of people are guilty of participating in grievance culture, regardless of ideologies.
The left airs a grievance about what Butker said. The right airs a grievance about the grievances aired about Butker. As Jon Stewart explained on Monday night, "Outrage is the engine of our modern media economy."
For the NFL, the challenge is to balance respecting the ability of individuals to speak their views with the interests of those who disagree. It wouldn't be fair for Butker's expression of his views in a non-violent way that complies with all league rules and procedures to result in a negative impact on his ability to play football.
Unfortunately for the NFL, that's not a principle that is applied universally to all players who wear No. 7.
