Found this on ESPN.com Woody is one of 8 owners appointed by Tags to find his succesor Updated: April 5, 2006, 3:27 PM ET Tagliabue appoints commissioner search committeeBy Len Pasquarelli ESPN.com Pittsburgh Steelers chairman Dan Rooney and Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, two men who were instrumental in reviving the flagging labor negotiations last month, on Wednesday were named by commissioner Paul Tagliabue as co-chairmen of the committee that will spearhead efforts to choose his successor. Tagliabue announced March 20 that he will retire at the end of July but reiterated at the annual NFL meetings last week in Orlando that he will remain onboard if a new commissioner is not chosen by then. The rest of the eight-member committee is comprised of owners Al Davis (Oakland), Lamar Hunt (Kansas City), Woody Johnson (New York Jets), Jerry Jones (Dallas), Robert Kraft (New England) and Michael McCaskey (Chicago). It is not yet known when, or where, the committee will convene for the first time. The next scheduled meeting of the full league membership is set for May 23-24 in Denver. The makeup of the committee appears to be fairly balanced among various ownership factions. Notable, however, is the exclusion of some of the more vocal owners from low-revenue franchises, including Mike Brown of Cincinnati and Buffalo's Ralph Wilson, the lone dissenters in the recent extension to the league's collective bargaining agreement with players. The role of Rooney, the NFL's most senior member and a close Tagliabue confidant, is not surprising. Rooney was the first owner Tagliabue informed of his decision to retire and the Steelers president then disseminated the information to his peers. It had been assumed that Rooney would play a prominent role on the search committee. It was originally believed that Tagliabue would announce the composition of the committee last Monday, at the outset of the NFL meetings. But that announcement was delayed and, in a wrap-up news conference last Wednesday afternoon, the commissioner suggested the committee would be named this week. The league has also retained an independent search firm to help seek out candidates. That firm is to meet individually with owners to identify the qualities they view as most important for the commissioner. Tagliabue expressed confidence last week that a new commissioner will be in place by July, but that is hardly the feeling around the league, with most owners believing the process will be a long one. It takes a two-thirds vote of the membership, or 22 of 32 votes, to elect a new commissioner. Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com. I normally don't cut and paste articles but found this to be interesting. It just strikes me as odd to see a Jets owner having his name listed with the likes of Kraft, Rooney, Al Davis and Jerry Jones BTW post #3000 woo hoo
Woody and Kraft were the ones who laid down the basic format for the current CBA and it seems that Woody has taken on a leadership role in the NFL finally. We'll see if it translates into wins for the Jets or not...
As of late Woody seems to have become one of the more influential owners in the league. Like him or hate him, he is good at being a businessman, and therefore he is the kind of guy who helps the NFL function as a whole..
When they meet, do you think Woody will sit next to Lamar Hunt, and if so, what do you think he'll say to him??
Woody being a member of the 8 high revenue teams has nothing to do with him being respected or a "power owner". The NFL was divided between the haves and the have nots. The Jets and Giants once the new stadium is opened will be one of the high revenue teams. The igh revenue owners had to put together a plan to bridge the divide between them and the low revenue teams. Woody's role in these negotiations does nothing to suggest that he is respected. Rather his meddling in the coach fiasco, his refusal to pay his head coaches anything near the league average, his hiring of unproven inexperienced coaches and GM's to save money and his support of Tannebaum's powerplay against Edwards and Bradway lead one to believe he is a lightweight owner.
The article talks about how Ralph Wilson and Mike Brown were left off the list, but can you imagine if Ralphy was included on the search committee. Tags: "Mr. Wilson, what do you think of this candidate?" Wilson: "I voted no. I really didn't understand him." Tags: "Mr. Wilson, what didn't you get." Wilson: "If it's Tuesday, it must be Brussels." Tags: "Next!"
I think you are wrong, if it ws the 8 high revenue owners Paul Allen would certainly be on the list along with Dan Snyder. I'll just say I respect your opinion on Woody but I think you are taking the wrong side of things. I think getting rid of Edwards was the best mopve the team could make, Edwards was certainly not worthy of what he was asking for. I don't think hiring Tann and Mangini were the direction this team needed to go. This team is on the up and it's because of Woody.
My apologies I skimmed the article and misread. While I don't like Woody and I believe the Jets will have a hard time getting any respect in the league until he is gone he is head and tails better than Wilson or Mike Brown. Brown may be winning now in Cincinnati but it is in spite of him. We may disagree on Edwards Tannebaum and Mangaini but I certainly do respect your opinion, admire the tone of your posts and enjoy what you have to say. Sorry again for the misundertsanding.
hopefully these guys rub off on woody.. those are owners who care about the teams they field those are the premier owners in the nfl. davis an jones are 2 of the best in the business.
Even though they're our division rivals, I think a lot of Woody's 'coming out' party is due to Patriots owner, Bob Kraft. Word is that months ago they put aside their differences and have actually become good friends (supposedly Kraft asked Johnson to accompany him on a trip to Israel). Perhaps with Kraft as a mentor, Woody is coming into his own, and as one of our brethren stated earlier, Woody and Kraft's son were instrumental in helping to new CBA move along. Now if only Kraft can put Belichick's head in a vice and make him respect Gang Green.
I think Woody is showing himself to be a pretty good owner lately. He stood up to NYC when the WSS deal was going south. He made the best decision for his franchise by staying with the Giants (regardless of how much I hate it, it was the right move.) He survived the Herm debacle. It wasn't pretty but it got done with minimal bloodletting. He was instrumental in the new CBA. He took a helluva risk with his choice for HC and making Tanny the GM. So far it looks like it was a great move. If he managed to earn Kraft's respect, that has to tell you something. He hated us like we hate Snyder. I don't think it's too hard to believe Woody is gaining respect around the league for making an honest effort to build a champion here. Think about this, it takes some balls to say that you want to model your team after your biggest rival. Congrats Woody! Now make us proud. And congrats on 3k RM.
It's who you hire for the football operation. Brown got out of the way and the Bengals have a decent FO and a terrific coach. Woody shows his ineptness in hiring corporate empty suits like Jay Cross and Terry Bradway and power grubbing former interns like Tannenbaum, who turns around and hires the least qualified of all the new HC hires because he is his best friend. You can't fire an owner no matter how inept.
Well said, Alio. While Buttle is entitled to speak his mind and opine whatever he wishes, I simply think he's wrong on Woody. Proof of the pudding is he was one of eight chosen. As far as Woody's "refusal to pay his head coaches anything near the league average," I suppose Buttle gets this from Woody's refusal to pay Herman Edwards the average. In my mind that makes him pretty smart!
