Former Steelers linebacker James Harrison, who recently retired from the NFL, came out hard against NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the commissioner’s office for the mishandling of the Ray Rice video.
An AP report came out Wednesday saying the NFL had been sent a copy of the video tape of Ray Rice hitting his fiancée in an elevator.
Harrison, who had been fined numerous times by the commissioner during his playing days, wrote directly to Goodell’s Twitter account Wednesday afternoon.
@nflcommish ain't no fun when the rabbit got the gun huh?
— James Harrison (@jharrison9292) September 10, 2014
Eloquent and understated, it’s understandable why this got so many retweets and favorites. If Goodell was wondering how hot the water was going to get, this has to be a pretty good indicator – his fans and his players are quite unhappy.
This is just one more example of why the Steelers didn't vote to approve the CBA!!!
— James Harrison (@jharrison9292) September 10, 2014
Harrison goes off the rail with this tweet a bit. Let’s focus on the point at hand, Mr. Harrison. Although, the Steelers were the only team that didn’t collectively vote for the current collective bargaining agreement from 2011. They were against Goodell’s handling of suspensions, coincidentally, because he was too heavy-handed. Yet, here’s Harrison piling on with the group saying Goodell didn’t use a heavy enough hand.
@nflcommish remains adamant he won't resign, source says:”Never.” Yea that's what Nixon but then again the CBA gave you more power than him!
— James Harrison (@jharrison9292) September 10, 2014
Can you imagine if we ever get audio tapes on Goodell and the commissioner’s office like we eventually got on Nixon?
Former Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma, who’s currently an NFL free agent, also took some shots of his own.
I know firsthand the commissioner will go to great lengths to “gather all evidence” but he purposely did not in this instance. Appalling.
— Jonathan Vilma (@JonVilma51) September 10, 2014
Vilma, if you’ll recall, was suspended by Goodell for the 2012 season for his role in “Bountygate” with the Saints. A judge later overturned the suspension, and Goodell eventually asked former commissioner Paul Tagliabue to review the investigation. Vilma was able to play in 11 games that season, but not without building some bad feelings for Goodell, no doubt.
If the commissioner had really asked for the video, he would've made it very public & very clear that the casino refused to give it to him.
— Jonathan Vilma (@JonVilma51) September 10, 2014
Vilma’s reactions on Twitter came this morning, after Goodell’s interview with CBS News aired.
He should be held accountable for his lack of action just like Ray Rice has finally been held accountable for his actions.
— Jonathan Vilma (@JonVilma51) September 10, 2014