League Owners Discuss Personal Conduct Policy, Approve Bills

NFL owners spent five hours discussing the league's personal conduct policy, domestic violence and discipline for misbehavior during their fall meetings Wednesday.

Owners listened to a presentation on domestic violence after unanimously approving the sale of the Buffalo Bills to Terry and Kim Pegula. The presentation included a video from former NFL player Joe Ehrmann (EHR'-man), who asked viewers to imagine what it would be like to see a loved one being subjected to abuse.

The video was part of a 40-minute presentation put together by the league with the help of a group of outside advisers. The goal is to educate everyone in the NFL about the dangers of spousal abuse, child abuse, sexual assault and other domestic violence topics.

After the meeting, commissioner Roger Goodell (guh-DEHL') said it's up to a neutral arbiter to decide whether he should testify during an appeal of Ray Rice's indefinite suspension. Goodell says he doesn't think testifying is his decision and it's not something he's addressed. The union is appealing Rice's suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy.

Meanwhile, a new Associated Press-GfK Poll indicates most NFL fans believe Commissioner Roger Goodell (guh-DEHL') should keep his job after his handling of recent domestic violence cases. Only 32 percent say Goodell should lose his job over the issue, with 66 percent saying he shouldn't.

Support for his handling of the cases is much lower, though, with 42 percent saying they disapprove. The same percentage neither approve nor disapprove, with just 15 percent approving.