Roger stops dodging
PHOENIX — Roger Goodell is ready to make his return to Foxborough.
The NFL commissioner has not been to a Patriots game at Gillette Stadium since the 2014-15 playoffs when the Deflategate saga began. On Tuesday, he said he would be at the season kickoff game, which traditionally has been at the home of the defending Super Bowl champs. That would mean Sept. 7 at Gillette.
The commissioner usually attends the first game of the season, which has become an event. Goodell said that won’t change this year.
“I plan to be at the kickoff game,” Goodell said.
Goodell will not be greeted warmly by Patriots fans, who view him as the enemy after he handed Tom Brady a four-game suspension last season for his role in deflating footballs during those playoffs following the 2014 season. It was a hot topic this year in the playoffs when Goodell went to Atlanta two weeks in a row rather than travel to Foxborough for the AFC Championship game. Then, the Patriots won the Super Bowl and Goodell had to present Robert Kraft with the Lombardi Trophy and Brady with the Super Bowl MVP award.
Perhaps Goodell’s return to Gillette will put the final punctuation mark on Deflategate. Let’s hope. Special teams leapers have been grounded by the NFL.
The owners voted on Tuesday to outlaw players from leaping over offensive linemen on field-goal or extra-point attempts. The act of jumping over the center to block kicks had gained popularity in recent years, but it was viewed as unsafe by the competition committee and the NFL Players Association.
The owners also approved changes to instant replay that will give the power to make the decision to the league office in New York. Referees will no longer have to go “under the hood” on the sideline. Instead they will be given a tablet on the field to view the play and will talk to the league office.
Committing multiple penalties during the same down to manipulate the game clock will now be considered unsportsmanlike conduct.
The owners tabled a proposal to shorten the overtime period from 15 minutes to 10. They also voted against a proposal to have the ball placed at the 20-yard line if a kickoff went through the uprights.
The Chargers have fairly high expectations for Andre Williams, the former Giants running back who did not live up to expectations after arriving as a 2014 fourth-round draft pick coming off a prolific rushing career at Boston College.
Williams showed promise as a rookie, rushing for a team-high 721 yards and eight touchdowns, but had a rough 2015 season (257 yards) and was released. He spent the 2016 season with the Chargers, mostly on the practice squad.
“I think Andre Williams is going to step up and do what he did his rookie year in New York,’’ Chargers coach Anthony Lynn.
The Chargers have a starting running back, Melvin Gordon, and are hoping the 24-year-old Williams can be a complementary player in the backfield.
“We’re looking for a guy who can be a tandem back with Melvin,” Lynn said. “I like to run the football multiple ways and it’s going to take more than one runner.”