Traina Thoughts: Roger Goodell Can't Even Win PR Battle Against Jerry Jones

Roger Goodell is so unlikable he's almost making Jerry Jones a sympathetic figure.

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1. I'm constantly in awe of how unlikable Roger Goodell is in just about every situation. It seems the unpopular commissioner can't have any long stretches without controversy. Sometimes the controversies are serious, such as the Ray Rice fiasco. Sometimes, they're ridiculous, such as Deflategate. Goodell's latest controversy is a mix of serious and ridiculous, but it's also unseemly because he's making us take Jerry Jones' side and there aren't many people in sports more slimy than Jones. 

In case you missed it Monday, Goodell reportedly wants Jones to reimburse the NFL $2 million in legal fees that piled up 1) during Jones' battle with Goodell over the commissioner's new contract and 2) during the Cowboys battle with the league over the Ezekiel Elliott's suspension.

Whether the NFL is entitled to that money or not, how can anyone think this isn't anything but a tit-for-tat, revenge situation for Goodell? The NFL does not need that $2 million. FOX just decided to pay the NFL $660 million for the rights to the Thursday night package of games. That $2 million to the NFL is like $5 to you and me.

But Jones was vocal about possibly not wanting Goodell to remain commissioner and wanted to fight his contract extension. Jones lost. But clearly that isn't enough for Goodell. Why bother bringing all this bad PR upon yourself? You can't even win a fight against Jerry Jones (of all people) in the court of public opinion. You got your contract extension for about $40 million a year. The league is still printing money. Other than trying to figure out what a catch is, this is a quiet, controversy-free time for the league. Why ignited this feud once again? 

Because he's Roger Goodell.

2. Here's an awesome moment from last night when the Raptors' DeMar DeRozan made one young fan very happy.

3. Will Isaiah Thomas blame this pass on LeBron James?

Isaiah Thomas literally throwing money away... pic.twitter.com/cMVg2najQk

— Colin Ward-Henninger (@ColinCBSSports) February 27, 2018

4. Noah Syndergaard came out guns blazing yesterday, literally and figuratively. He dominated on the mound.

Here are Noah Syndergaard's velocities in a perfect first inning:

100 mph
100 mph
100 mph
100 mph
90 mph
100 mph
97 mph
91 mph
101 mph
101 mph
92 mph

It's his first outing of the year.

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) February 26, 2018

And then he pulled this power move.

Syndergaard finished his workout, says it is too hot for a shirt. pic.twitter.com/Y1QkCYsdoE

— Mike Puma (@NYPost_Mets) February 26, 2018

But in typical New York media fashion, this just couldn't be anything but a great day for Syndergaard and the Mets.

Noah Syndergaard let loose with multiple 100-mph pitches...but was that a good idea? - @NYDNHarper https://t.co/XwaHv54x67 pic.twitter.com/Fl8VAQVSr4

— NY Daily News Sports (@NYDNSports) February 27, 2018

5. "Good Morning Football" host Nate Burleson dropped a rap track to sum up the 2017 NFL season and it was pretty impressive.

.@Nate13Burleson's BACK...

With the 🔥 2017 NFL season recap! 🎤🏈 (cc: @teamjuju) https://t.co/knGQoYPL2M

— NFL (@NFL) February 26, 2018

6. This was a pretty cool exchange between Antonio Brown and Larry Fitzgerald.

That's far too many drops for my liking, still got work to do. What about your 582 passes & 7,848 yards over the past 5 seasons? If I'm not mistaken that's the most by a player in any five year span in NFL history. My friend, that's the standard!!! https://t.co/x49ht5powC

— Larry Fitzgerald (@LarryFitzgerald) February 27, 2018

Studying some of the best hands in the league.@LarryFitzgerald Career Drops including postseason:

'04: 2
'05: 1
'06: 5
'07: 0
'08: 2
'09: 2
'10: 4
'11: 2
'12: 3
'13: 2
'14: 0
'15: 1
'16: 3#GrabThat #DropFiles 📁

— AB (@AB84) February 25, 2018

7. The WWE let Roman Reigns push the envelope with his promo against Brock Lesnar last night and it must have worked because I actually saw positive tweets about Reigns on Twitter afterward.

8. Three years ago today, the Internet went crazy trying to figure out the color of a dress and Blake Griffin sent out an all-time great tweet.

What Colors Are This Dress?http://t.co/jvesuCjEzE pic.twitter.com/Z81okr8XK8

— BuzzFeed (@BuzzFeed) February 27, 2015

Forget the dress guys..... What color am I?

— Blake Griffin (@blakegriffin23) February 27, 2015

8. Kids, if you have a dream, don't give up. Don't ever give up.

Somehow this all equates to my happiness right!? Happy f’n birthday my friend. Done. #Followed

— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) February 27, 2018

RANDOM WRESTLING VIDEO OF THE DAY: The choice today is pretty obvious.

Traina Thoughts is the best of the Internet, plus musings by SI.com writer, Jimmy Traina. Get the link to a new Traina's Thoughts each day by following on Twitter and liking on Facebook. Catch up on previous editions of Traina Thoughts right here. And check out Jimmy Traina's weekly podcast, "Off The Board."

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IN CLOSING: The NFL Combine is here, so file this away: Baker Mayfield will be a better pro than Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen.