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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell Comments on Harrison Butker's Controversial Speech
After a league statement, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell gave thoughts of his own on a controversial set of comments from Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker.
Goodell had this to say, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero:
"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."
Butker delivered a commencement speech at Benedictine College earlier this month. Aspects of his speech touched on sensitive topics, including a view on gender roles and women empowerment that drew a negative response from the public.
Here is an excerpt from his speech:
"For the ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment. You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives. I want to speak directly to you briefly because I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you. How many of you are sitting here now about to cross this stage and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you are going to get in your career? Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world, but I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world."
The league's previous statement acknowledged that Butker delievered the speech in a "personal" capacity, and emphasized its commitment to inclusion.
The sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, an order of nuns associated with Benedictine College have denounced Butker's words.
Butker also gave a commencement address at his alma mater, Georgia Tech, in 2023.
Josh Wilson is the news director of the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in 2024, he worked for FanSided in a variety of roles, most recently as senior managing editor of the brand’s flagship site. He has also served as a general manager of Sportscasting, the sports arm of a start-up sports media company, where he oversaw the site’s editorial and business strategy. Wilson has a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from SUNY Cortland and a master’s in accountancy from the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois. He loves a good nonfiction book and enjoys learning and practicing Polish. Wilson lives in Chicago but was raised in upstate New York. He spent most of his life in the Northeast and briefly lived in Poland, where he ate an unhealthy amount of pastries for six months.