Geroge M. Thomas: ESPN looks weak in wake of Bill Simmons suspension

Bill Simmons dared his bosses at ESPN to drop the hammer on him and they obliged.

Three weeks is the length of the suspension. No writing and editing on his ESPN brand name website Grantland.com and no tweeting.

Simmons is being sent to his virtual room for speaking truth to power to one of the Worldwide Leader’s content partners – the NFL, the mighty, mighty shield, the only shield in the universe that might be more powerful than Captain America’s. The partner ESPN agreed to pay $15 billion over 10 years in a contract signed in 2011.

Now, I’m no Simmons fan. He often reminds me of that kid who got picked on during recess on the playground who grew up to be successful and is seeking revenge. At times he can be off-putting in a child-like way. That’s his right, perceptions be damned.

However, there was nothing childish about his remarks about NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and the sham of a news conference Goodell put on last week where he was called out by a host of sportswriters.

Goodell waded deep into a river of emotional muck and subsequent denial by saying that he hadn’t seen the Ray Rice tape that surfaced showing Rice landing a haymaker on his then-fiancé and now wife. That’s right, the head of the NFL, the guy who got paid a cool $44 million to guide the league to prosperity last year didn’t know. Please, read that again and see if it registers on the reality meter. I’ll be right here waiting.

Yeah, I thought so.

It didn’t register for Simmons either and he said so in his B.S. Report podcast for Grantland.com that, according to reports, has been yanked. Simmons speaks his mind whether appropriate, professional or not.

“I just think not enough is being made out of the fact that they knew about the tape and they knew what was on it,” Simmons said on the podcast. “Goodell, if he didn’t know what was on that tape, he’s a liar. I’m just saying it. He is lying. I think that dude is lying. If you put him up on a lie detector test that guy would fail.”

Later on in the podcast after some profanity-laced talk of Goodell, Simmons speaks the magical words:

“I really hope somebody calls me or emails me and says I’m in trouble for anything I say about Roger Goodell,” Simmons said. “Because if one person says that to me, I’m going public. You leave me alone. The commissioner’s a liar and I get to talk about that on my podcast. Thank you. … Please, call me and say I’m in trouble. I dare you.”

Boom went the dynamite Wednesday, coincidentally, after the close of business. And ESPN issued this statement later in the evening:

“Every employee must be accountable to ESPN and those engaged in our editorial operations must also operate within ESPN’s journalistic standards. We have worked hard to ensure that our recent NFL coverage has met that criteria. Bill Simmons did not meet those obligations in a recent podcast, and as a result we have suspended him for three weeks.”

But this is one that could and should backfire on the Worldwide Leader. Some people often wonder why journalists don’t openly root for their favorite teams. This is why a writer who grew up cheering for the Browns won’t be caught dead in Browns gear. This is why beat writers and columnists are always “so negative.” If they get too close for comfort they get compromised, be it by emotions, favors or money. They pay Simmons to offer his opinion. He did.

Right now, at this moment in time, ESPN threw its credibility out the window – especially after receiving limitless praise, and rightfully so – for an Outside the Lines piece that further inflamed the Rice scandal. It’s fitting that Outside the Lines would be the outlet for the story. It is generally above reproach, and ESPN? It received the glory of practicing journalism for allowing the reporters associated with that story to do their jobs.

Other ESPN luminaries such as Keith Olbermann, Chris Mortensen and then Simmons were at the height of their respective games with their insight into the Rice situation and later the reporting associated with the Adrian Peterson child abuse case.

With Simmons’ suspension, the network of channels showed that they want to practice journalism selectively and they will bow to power of an almighty partner. Make no mistake; “partner” is a loose definition. Right now, ESPN looks like the NFL’s lapdog.