Not to minimize your question, but the entire episode seemes to be more about hype, than about anything else. A growing number of true football fans are coming to the conclusion, of, "who cares". Personally, I certainly don't.
I agree with the critics that this is Goodell trying to distance himself from Kraft, whom many owners have accused of being too buddy-buddy. After the way the league handled Spygate, with just a few fines and a suspension of draft picks the owners criticized Goodell for not coming down on the Patriots organization hard enough.
