Paul Tagliabue
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., watch and listen to Saints quarterback Drew Brees, speak during a Congressional Gold Medal ceremony honoring amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) advocate and former National Football League (NFL) player, Steve Gleason, in Statuary Hall on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Ex-NFL player Steve Gleason honored by Congress for ALS work

Jan. 15, 2020 07:08 PM EST

FILE - This Feb. 5, 2011, file photo shows Steve Sabol during an interview in Dallas. NFL films pioneer Steve Sabol was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, announced Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)
Tagliabue, NFL Films' Sabol headed to Hall of Fame

By Barry Wilner Jan. 15, 2020 08:30 AM EST

FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2004 file photo,Buffalo Bills quarterbacks coach Sam Wyche answers a question during a news conference introducing the Bills new coaching staff at the Ralph Wilson Stadium complex in Orchard Park, N.Y. Sam Wyche, who pushed the boundaries as an offensive innovator with the Cincinnati Bengals and challenged the NFL’s protocols along the way, has died, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2020. He was 74. (AP Photo/Don Heupel, File)
Sam Wyche, boundary-pushing coach of Bengals, dead at 74

By Joe Kay Jan. 02, 2020 06:56 PM EST

FILE - In this Thursday, June 6, 2013 file photo, David Stern, NBA Commissioner, right, and Adam Silver, Deputy Commissioner, speak before the start of Game 1 of the NBA Finals basketball game between the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat in Miami. David Stern, who spent 30 years as the NBA's longest-serving commissioner and oversaw its growth into a global power, has died on New Year’s Day, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2020. He was 77. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)
Reaction to the death of former NBA Commissioner David Stern

By The Associated Press Jan. 01, 2020 07:21 PM EST

FILE - In this Jan. 6, 1980, file photo, Pittsburgh Steelers Donnie Shell (31) hits Houston Oilers' Mike Renfro causing Renfro to fumble the ball in second quarter of AFC championship NFL football game in Pittsburgh. NFL champion players Roger Craig, Drew Pearson and Donnie Shell are among the finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's special centennial class announced Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019. A 25-member panel of pro football experts is charged with selecting 10 senior players, two coaches and three contributors who will be inducted into the Canton, Ohio shrine next year as part of the league's celebration of its 100th season. (AP Photo/File)
5 Super Bowl-winning coaches are finalists for Hall of Fame

By Barry Wilner Dec. 19, 2019 01:00 PM EST

File-This Dec. 22, 2012, file photo shows Pittsburgh Steelers chairman emeritus Dan Rooney attending the unveiling of a marker commemorating the 40th anniversary of the "Immaculate Reception" at the sight of the catch on the Northside of Pittsburgh. In 2003, the NFL had three minority head coaches: future Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Dungy, Herman Edwards and Marvin Lewis. In the 12 previous seasons, there had been six. Total. Considering that the majority of the players in the league 16 years ago were minorities, that imbalance was enormous. And disturbing. And, frankly, it was unfair. Paul Tagliabue, then the NFL commissioner, put together a committee that established the "Rooney Rule," which requires all teams with coaching and front office vacancies to interview minority candidates. The rule, long overdue, was named for Rooney, then president of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the overseer of that committee. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
NFL At 100: Rooney Rule has its positives and its faults

By Barry Wilner Dec. 06, 2019 12:45 PM EST

FILE - In this March 8, 2006, file photo, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue smiles while addressing the media to detail terms of a six-year deal approved at the NFL owners meeting in Grapevine, Texas. NFL team owners knew in 1989 they needed a leader who was going to bring the league out of the dark decade of the 1980s, when litigation, labor troubles and stagnant TV ratings dramatically slowed the growth of the league and hastened Pete Rozelle's departure. They chose Tagliabue. (AP Photo/D.J. Peters, File)
When NFL needed change, Paul Tagliabue was choice in 1989

By Barry Wilner Nov. 22, 2019 12:09 PM EST

FILE - In this Sept;. 25, 2006, file photo, New Orleans Saints fullback Mike Karney, left, is consoled by teammate Ernie Conwell as he weeps at the end of a 23-3 win over the Atlanta Falcons at the newly re-opened Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. This one couldn't have been scripted any better for a team that spent all of last season on the road, and it couldn't have come at a better time for a city that is still struggling to overcome the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
NFL At 100-AP Was There-Falcons-Saints 2006

By The Associated Press Nov. 05, 2019 07:19 PM EST

FILE - In this Jan. 23, 1984, file photo, Los Angeles Raiders' Matt Millen gestures as he celebrates with teammate Reggie Kinlaw following the Raiders' 38-9 win over the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl XVIII in Tampa. (AP Photo/File)
NFL at 100: Montana, Rice and 49ers rule the 1980s

By Dennis Waszak Jr. Nov. 01, 2019 12:37 PM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 1966, file photo, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, center, discusses a new television contract for championship games for a record $2 million per game with Bill MacPhail, left, Vice President CBS-TV and John Reynolds President CBS-TV, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/RH, File)
Rozelle: From compromise candidate to commissioner nonpareil

By Barry Wilner Oct. 18, 2019 10:28 AM EDT

FILE - In this Feb. 13, 1957, file photo, NFL Commissioner Bert Bell gestures in his office in Philadelphia. Bert Bell was not the first NFL commissioner. He was, however, the first to make a major impact on pro football. To call Bell the father of the NFL draft would be accurate. It also would be an incomplete assessment, because Bell was a brilliant innovator who helped carry his league from afterthought to a player among American sports. (AP Photo/Warren M. Winterbottom, File)
Bert Bell was more than the father of the NFL draft

By Barry Wilner Sep. 20, 2019 12:01 PM EDT

FILE - This Jan. 17, 2012, file photo shows New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton speaks at a season-ending news conference in Metairie, La. In March 2012, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell suspended Saints coach Sean Payton for one season, general manager Mickey Loomis for eight games and assistant head coach Joe Vitt for six games because players were paid bonuses for injuring opposing team players. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)
NFL At 100: A look at the biggest scandals in NFL history

By Rob Maaddi Sep. 06, 2019 12:10 PM EDT

FILE - In this Aug. 20, 2002, file photo, Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen gestures during a news conference at the team's headquarters in Denver. The late Pat Bowlen will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio on Aug. 3, 2019. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski, File)
HOF Preview: Bowlen provided blueprint for owners

By Arnie Stapleton Jul. 31, 2019 03:07 AM EDT

FILE - This Feb. 4, 2018, file photo shows a general view of U.S. Bank Stadium during the pregame of the NFL Super Bowl 52 football game in Minneapolis. In its early days, the NFL often relied on baseball stadiums for its teams. Often, the football team took the name of the baseball team, looking to create the illusion there was a connection between the teams. But once pro football expanded and was shown for free on television, the sport was on its way. (AP Photo/Adam Bettcher, File)
After piggybacking on baseball, NFL stood tall in expansion

By Schuyler Dixon Jun. 19, 2019 01:03 PM EDT

In this Nov. 28, 2010, photo, Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen looks on prior to the start of an NFL football game between the St. Louis Rams and the Denver Broncos, in Denver. Denver Broncos owner Bowlen dies at age 75, family says in statement released by team.(AP Photo/Joe Mahoney, File)
Pat Bowlen was not your typical NFL owner

By Arnie Stapleton Jun. 14, 2019 03:30 PM EDT

FILE - In this July 29, 2011, file photo, Denver Broncos NFL football team owner Pat Bowlen looks on during training camp in Englewood, Colo. Pat Bowlen, who transformed the team from also-rans into NFL champions and helped the league usher in billion-dollar television deals, died late Thursday night, June 13, 2019, just under two months before his enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was 75. In a statement posted on the Broncos' website, Bowlen's family said he died peacefully at home surrounded by loved ones. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey, File)
Broncos owner Pat Bowlen dies at 75 before Hall enshrinement

By Arnie Stapleton Jun. 14, 2019 04:11 AM EDT

FILE - In this Dec. 16, 2018, file photo, Cincinnati Bengals outside linebacker Vontaze Burfict walks the field during practice before an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders in Cincinnati. The Bengals terminated the contract of Burfict on Monday, March 18, 2019, releasing him to free agency. (AP Photo/Frank Victores, File)
Oakland Raiders at Cincinnati Bengals 12/16/2018

Apr. 11, 2019 08:55 AM EDT

FILE - In this Jan. 4, 1998, file photo, Green Bay Packers Reggie White moves in on the Tampa Bay defense in the NFC Divisional Playoff game in Green Bay, Wis. The NFL wouldn't be the gigantic force it is in society and sports today without free agency empowering most players with freedom and fortune and endowing most long-suffering franchises and their fans with hope. The first offseason featuring modern free agency was in 1993, and it produced the most significant free agent signing in NFL history: Reggie White (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
NFL At 100: Free agency has been a boon to NFL

By Arnie Stapleton Mar. 12, 2019 05:40 PM EDT

FILE - In this July 25, 2011, file photo, NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, left, and NFL football Commissioner Roger Goodell speak during a news conference at the NFL Players Association in Washington, after the NFL Players Association executive board and 32 team reps voted unanimously to approve the terms of a deal with owners to the end the 4½-month lockout. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
NFL at 100: Another labor stoppage looms in 2 years

By Barry Wilner Mar. 10, 2019 01:01 PM EDT

FILE - In this Nov. 1, 1966, file photo, NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, left, announces that New Orleans has been awarded the league's 16th franchise during a news conference in New Orleans. Under Rozelle, there were two strikes and three other work stoppages, though only the strikes affected the regular season. And, to be fair, Rozelle was not involved in negotiations with the union, then led by Ed Garvey; the NFL’s management council had full authority. (AP Photo, File)
NFL At 100: Finding labor peace always a tortured process

By Barry Wilner Mar. 10, 2019 01:00 PM EDT