ASHBURN – NFL commissioner Roger Goodell tried to calm worries about a possible lockout in two years and addressed player safety issues. He also fielded a question from a rare source: a rookie.
After hearing Goodell talk about various topics, defensive end Jeremy Jarmon wanted to know one more thing. So when Goodell was done, Jarmon introduced himself and asked what he would do to make the game safer, not just for quarterbacks, but defensive ends as well.
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Jarmon asked if the league would enforce rules on leg whips and if they would make chop blocks illegal.
“I was dead serious,” Jarmon said. “He said I was the second or third guy who asked if there was a plan to ban cut blocks and he said they were considering it.”
Goodell visited Redskins Park Tuesday and also planned to visit with union chief DeMaurice Smith later in the day. It was expected to be an informal meeting.
The league is facing a possible lockout of the 2011 season.
“A lockout is not a strategy or an objective,” Goodell said. “We’re trying to get information to union leadership and make sure they understand the challenges we’re facing as a business. … When we get an outcome I don’t know. We’re looking for the right outcome.”
Redskins quarterback Colt Brennan said, “You get notes on your desk saying there’s going to be a lockout and he shows up and says there’s not going to be a lockout.”
Goodell said the league is still considering adding two more games to the regular season schedule, partly because of increasingly low attendance for preseason games.
Goodell also said he speaks with Philadelphia quarterback Michael Vick every week as he monitors his return to the NFL.
“A lot of those issues I focus on are off the field,” Goodell said. “How is he doing in the transition? Does he have his family relocated? Does he have the right people around him helping him make decisions?”
He also said the league discussed precautions about swine flu in how to make sure it doesn’t spread among teams or fans at stadiums.
