NFL declines comment on proposed White House cuts to TBI research and education

Commissioner Roger Goodell went to Washington on Monday. While he was standing in the Oval Office, a report emerged from ESPN.com regarding a White House proposal to slash millions from the budget for traumatic brain injury research and education.

In response to an email from PFT, the NFL has declined comment on the development.

It's really no surprise. The league seems to be fully committed to achieving peaceful coexistence with the current administration. At a time when a slew of executive orders have various industries scrambling, the NFL is trying to make no sudden moves.

Speaking out against the potential elimination of federal funding for a cause about which the NFL claims to be passionate would fall into that category.

It will be far better — and, in the grand scheme of things, cheaper — for the NFL to fund TBI research and education efforts on its own. It's part of the complex, but not all that complicated, dance in which the NFL must engage to properly navigate the current political waters.

Basically, the strategy consists of avoiding the iceberg. And everybody knows what the iceberg is.

As Goodell's comments from Monday's event proved, he's willing to say all the right things, not say any of the wrong things, swallow his pride in the presence of someone who once called him a "dope," and chart a course toward open waters and far smoother sailing than the likes of Harvard and multiple major law firms are currently experiencing.

It's not difficult to do it, once the decision is made to play the game with the overriding goal of winning. And the rewards include not only the avoidance of overt pressure to dump the Rooney Rule but also a draft in D.C., a stadium in D.C., and four years without holding their breath and waiting for a broadside attack against the league's interests.