Rich Hofmann | Pacman wrong target: Go after teams

PACMAN IS A wonderful nickname to put in a headline, which is one of Adam Jones' smaller problems this morning. The man is a well-publicized pimple, though, the ugly manifestation of an underlying issue.

The problem is not NFL players gone wild.

The problem is the teams that employ them.

Pacman Jones, Tennessee cornerback/serial knucklehead, is the lead story. He has been suspended for a year by new NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Cincinnati wide receiver Chris Henry, another young role model way too familiar with the workings of the judicial system, has been suspended for eight games. This is all a part of Goodell's new policy of getting tough on those who would sully the name of the NFL by their off-field behavior, thereby removing bread from the mouths of wealthy owners and players throughout the land.

OK, that is too cynical a take. No one is really against what Goodell is trying to do (other than maybe a few members of the defense bar). The players union is pretty much applauding. Everybody is.

And while the new policy does state that teams also can be penalized under this plan, that really should be the centerpiece, not an addendum. Because the NFL could end this whole business tomorrow by putting the teams on the hook in a significant way for the actions of their employees.

But that is getting ahead of things.

"This is the thing that has become most apparent to me," said Joe Banner, the Eagles' president. "I've had the pleasure, or the luck, of having a job in this business for about 12 years. During that time, I've had the job and I've had young kids who follow the players.

"Anybody who is around the players will tell you the same thing: that, overwhelmingly, they really are hard workers, good role models, just good guys. But the public, even my kids, they get a distorted view because of a small number of individuals. That's the problem."

Banner says he likes the new policy. He speaks from a pretty secure perch. The Eagles have had very few bad-conduct issues in recent years, almost nothing worth talking about. They have stressed character for years, but they have simultaneously taken chances on some players with interesting legal detours during their college careers and seen them work out.

Again, we're talking about very few problems. Banner, though, is not kidding himself.