If there was any thought that Adam Silver would consider taking over for Roger Goodell as NFL commissioner, the NBA’s functionary shot down the notion with the quickness.
Sorry NFL, Adam Silver does not want to be your commissioner
Silver ‘immediately said no’ when asked about his interest in the NFL commissioner job.
Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
As the NFL engages in a civil war of sorts between Goodell and a handful of team owners who feel he is ill-suited for a long-term extension, Silver’s name rose as a potential successor. According to ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham, the confidant of one owner reached out to the NBA commissioner to gauge his interest in potentially running the NFL.
... Silver immediately said no.
Why would an NFL owner be interested in Silver’s leadership?
While the NFL has flailed in the tepid waters of the current political and social climate of today’s United States, Silver has enabled his teams and players to use their platform to address issues that are important to them.
When President Donald Trump criticized Stephen Curry for not accepting a White House invitation that was never actually sent, players, both past and present, rallied around the two-time MVP.
Other players, like Milwaukee’s Malcolm Brogdon, spoke out after the president failed to condemn members of a white supremacist rally who protested the removal of a Confederate statue in Charlottesville, Va. One member ran over an innocent bystander.
All the while, Silver has turned the NBA into arguably the most popular professional sports league in the world, with heavy influences in Asia and budding relationships in Europe and Mexico. The future of the NBA is undoubtedly bright, while the NFL’s 10- to 20-year outlook is anyone’s guess.
Silver rejected the thought of running the NFL, but that’s not a measure of where the league is today. The fact that an NFL group would be interested in Silver’s leadership only speaks volumes to the job he’s done in the NBA.
