Michael Dixon
In 1994, NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue was seemingly dismissive of the concussion issue.
He described concussions as “one of those pack-journalism issues,“ and said that while concussions existed, the number was “relatively small” adding that “the problem is the journalist issue.”
The now former commissioner acknowledges that his words were poorly chosen.
“Obviously, I do regret those remarks,” Tagliabue said in an interview on the Talk of Fame Sports Network. “Looking back, it was not sensible language to use to express my thoughts at the time. My language was intemperate, and it led to serious misunderstanding. I overreacted on issues which we were already working on. But that doesn’t excuse the overreaction and intemperate language.”
Being cynical, we can’t help but point out that a strong argument against Tagliabue’s Hall of Fame candidacy is the NFL’s delayed reaction to concussions under his watch. Additionally, we’re only days away from the former commissioner finding out if he made the Hall of Fame.
But even with that cynicism in mind, we have to give Tagliabue some credit for at least being better late than never.
There’s no doubt that we know more about concussions now than we did in 1994 — or even 2004. The NFL’s problem, though, was that it treated the issue as nothing more than a minor inconvenience for too long. Eventually, the sentiment became too strong to ignore.
Unfortunately, that created a bigger problem. Tagliabue’s inactivity left much of the handling of the issue to Tagliabue’s successor, Roger Goodell. The current commissioner doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence, just ask President Donald Trump.
Apologies or not, the NFL waited too long to get in front of this issue. When they finally did, it became a mess. The people who ultimately decide whether Tagliabue is Hall of Fame material have to weigh what’s happened in the last 23 years well above his apology in 2017. If he’s still worthy of a Hall of Fame spot, fine, but this apology shouldn’t do anything to aid it.
