Roger Goodell found himself often playing defense as he met with reporters two days prior to Super Bowl XLIX, with the ongoing deflate-gate controversy and questions about the Commissioner's own job performance dominating the discussion at his annual state of the league address.
Goodell acknowledged that the 2014 season, during which he's endured heavy public criticism for his handling of a number of league matters -- most notably the domestic violence case involving former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice -- "has been a tough year on me personally."
"It's been a year of humility and learning," he stated. "We obviously as an organization have gone through adversity. We take it seriously, It's an opportunity for us to get better.
"So we've all done a lot of soul searching, starting with yours truly."
Goodell was at one point asked if there were any set of circumstances that would lead him to resign, to which he firmly replied that he had no plans of doing so. Another media member questioned as to whether he deserved a pay cut over the league's recent travails, with Goodell saying his salary is decided by the 32 owners.
Allegations of perceived favoritism towards one of Sunday's participants, the New England Patriots, were also prevalent during Friday's 48-minute press conference.
One reporter asked the Commissioner if his close relationship with New England owner Robert Kraft could potentially impact the league's investigation over the Patriots' use of improperly deflated footballs in the AFC Championship Game. Goodell attended a party at Kraft's residence shortly prior to the team's 45-7 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
"I admire, respect and think very highly of him on a personal level. There's no hiding from that point," said Goodell of Kraft. "Since he knows me so well and knows that I'm not going to do anything to compromise the integrity of the league, I think he has no doubt that I will do the right thing."
Goodell also responded to Kraft's recent statement that the league owed his team an apology if the current investigation, overseen by prominent attorney Ted Wells, finds that the Patriots did no wrongdoing.
"This is my job. It's my responsibility to protect integrity of the game," he remarked. "I represent 32 teams. If we have any information that rules were violated, I have to pursue that. We will do it vigorously and it is important for (the investigation) to be thorough and fair."
[SportsNetwork.com]
