'Take Out Goodell!' Papa John's Wild NFL Story of Dan Snyder & Jerry Jones 'Hatred' of Roger Goodell

"Remember, Goodell is a coward, and he is incompetent. And he’s just lucky." - "Papa John,'' allegedly, to Snyder and Jones.

It is obvious that former Papa John's CEO John Schnatter - ousted from his perch after using the N-word on a business call - has an ax to grind with NFL commissioner NFL Roger Goodell.

What is not certain is whether "Papa John's'' wild claims about Goodell vs. Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones are the result of somebody watching too many gangster movies.

“Snyder and Jones hate Goodell,” Schnatter said in a visit with Jason Whitlock, alleging that the owners told him, "You need to take this guy out.''

Jerry Jones Papa John

Papa John, Snyder, Jones

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Jerry, John, Dan

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Goodell, Jones

“I said, ‘No, this is not my job to fire your commissioner. He works for you.’ Remember, Goodell is a coward, and he is incompetent. And he’s just lucky."

It is certainly true that few years ago, Jones was at odds with Goodell over both the commissioner's handling of the Ezekiel Elliott behavioral case and the NFL's dealings with the issue of standing for the national anthem.

What was the reasoning of Jones and Snyder is going to "Papa John''?

"You’re the No. 1 sponsor of the league as far as notoriety and acceptance and association,'' John Schnatter quoted them as saying. "Everybody loves you; they love Peyton (Manning, involved in Papa John's ad campaign.

"We hate Goodell.'”

It is the position of Schnatter - ousted in 2018 as the pizza company's CEO after using the N-wordduring a Papa John's conference call - that Jones, Snyder and PepsiCo's CEO "all called me — several other folks — about Goodell’s conduct and the way he was handling this.''

In the end, it was the pizza guy Schnatter who was booted, while Jones (who has owned a large stake in Papa John's in Texas) and Snyder and the other owners in 2017 provided Goodell with a lucrative contract extension.

And we're all left wondering if the NFL is really as full of "GoodFellas''-level shady and goofy characters as "Papa John'' alleges.


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Mike Fisher
MIKE FISHER

Mike Fisher - as a newspaper beat writer and columnist and on radio and TV, where he is an Emmy winner - has covered the NFL since 1983, is the author of two best-selling books on the NFL.