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The NFL has repeatedly vowed to disclose the outcome of attorney Mary Jo White’s investigation of the Washington Commanders. On Friday, a member of Congress urged the NFL to honor its promise.
Via the Washington Post, Representative Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) sent a two-page letter to Commissioner Roger Goodell regarding the subject.
Raskin said he is “heartened by” the “stated commitment to full transparency,” and that he expects the league to follow through on its promise.
“I write with regard to the National Football League’s . . . investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct and financial malfeasance against Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder,” Raskin wrote, per the Post. “More than a year has passed since your pledge to ‘share the results of that investigation,’ yet, to date, no part of the information has been released to the public. In light of the impending sale of the Commanders franchise, I urge you to honor your commitment to release the report in its entirety and ‘take additional disciplinary action if warranted.'”
Goodell repeatedly has said the report will be publicized — unlike the report from attorney Beth Wilkinson, which was swept under the rug with a cursory summary provided to the public on July 1, 2021.
“As you have previously recognized, with one of the most prominent platforms in America, ‘the NFL is held to a higher standard, and properly so,’ ” Raskin wrote to Goodell. “You now have an opportunity to show the American people — and, most importantly, the victims of the Commanders’ toxic workplace — that you will adhere to this higher standard by ensuring transparency and accountability, by releasing Ms. White’s full report, and by taking additional action consistent with the findings of the report.”
There’s no reason to believe the NFL won’t disclose the report. There is ample reason to wonder whether White’s report will reach a far different set of conclusions with Snyder selling the team than she would have reached if Snyder had dug in his heels and refused to sell.
Yes, some would say that’s a conspiracy theory. But White began her investigation in February 2022. Why hasn’t she finalized it?
It’s reasonable to think she has waited because the league (her client) has wanted her to wait, with the subtle (or otherwise) understanding that, if Snyder finally walks away, she won’t reach the kind of conclusions that would have made him run.
Snyder has reached an agreement to sell the team to a group led by Josh Harris. The NFL plans to meet to consider approval of the deal on July 20.
After the sale is approved, our guess is that the league will release a sanitized and whitewashed report from White that finds inconclusive evidence to support the allegations against the team and Snyder.