Embattled NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's cloudy future has sparked a sentiment that the Washington Redskins' controversial name might also be in trouble.
SI.com reported that Redskins owner Daniel Snyder issued a statement of support for the commissioner after calls for his resignation surfaced following the public airing of former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice hitting his then-fiancée Janay Palmer inside a casino elevator in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
"Roger Goodell has always had the best interests of football at heart, both on and off the field," Snyder said in the statement on Saturday. "We are fortunate to have him as our Commissioner. The entire Washington Redskins organization strongly endorses his efforts to eradicate domestic abuse and the independent investigation into the Ray Rice assault."
Goodell is under fire because he originally gave Rice a two-game suspension for hitting his now-wife Janay, then changed the NFL policy on discipline for domestic violence cases out of the blue just two weeks before the video of Rice hitting Palmer went public.
Then, Goodell denied anyone in the league offices having seen the video, only to be refuted by a police officer in Atlantic City who recorded a conversation with a woman answering the phone at the league offices confirming that the video had been delivered.
Organizations have begun calling for Goodell's resignation, which could be problematic for Snyder in his fight to keep the Redskins moniker in the face of growing opposition who attest that the nickname is offensive to Native Americans.
The NFL has supported Snyder's hard-line stance, contending that the nickname is not offensive.
"The team name is not a slur," said Adolpho Birch, the NFL's senior vice president of labor policy and government affairs, as reported by Sports World News. "The team name is the team name as it has been for 80-plus years. And what we need to do is get beyond sort of understanding this as a point-blank situation and understand it more as a variety of perspectives that all need to be addressed, that all need to be given some weight, so that at the end of it we can come to some understanding that is appropriate and reflects the opinions of all.
"I think that is part of the issue with the question is that it is constantly being sort of put into a point-blank, yes-or-no, yes-or-no kind of context when that's not the reality of the situation that we're dealing with."
If Goodell leaves office, Snyder's support from the league could erode.
Do you think Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has ulterior motives in voicing support for NFL commissioner Roger Goodell? Comment below or tell us @SportsWN.
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