You can dress it up, you can bike it out — but some traditions are simply too strong to break. Roger Goodell could’ve ridden into Green Bay on a Harley with a cheesehead crown and Packers tattoo sleeve, and it still wouldn’t have saved him. As per the Draft tradition, Roger got thunderously booed the moment he hit the stage. All while grinning atop a bicycle in honor of a beloved Packers pregame ritual.
Green Bay legends like Clay Matthews, Jordy Nelson, and even Lil’ Wayne pedaled out alongside him. Didn’t matter. The boos rained down harder than a Lambeau blizzard. And by his expression, it was taking us back to when he said, “Hey, keep booing. We’re still here, not going anywhere.”
For the uninitiated, booing Goodell isn’t just sport — it’s a ceremony. It’s been baked into the NFL Draft since the early 2010s, growing louder with every fine, suspension, scandal, and questionable officiating call. Concussions? Deflategate? The Ray Rice fiasco? The Kaepernick blackballing? If it made headlines, Roger caught the shrapnel.
Plus, you add to the fact that the draft stage is one of the few places where fans, hyped up on cheap beer and hope, get to voice years of pent-up fury straight into the Commish’s earpiece. And you know what? Roger Goodell absolutely leans into it. Like a WWE villain cutting a promo, he almost seems to welcome the chorus of boos.
Back in 2020, he even partnered with Bud Light on a #BooTheCommish campaign, turning every jeer into a charitable donation. It’s a brilliant move when you think about it: why fight the tide when you can surf it? Yet no matter how many charity dollars or bike rides he piles up, nothing softens the sheer awkwardness of getting booed.
Roger Goodell getting booed while riding a bike is hilarious pic.twitter.com/kIOaIa0URK
— Mike Ro 𝕏 (@nuro_mike) April 25, 2025
Green Bay’s setting only made the scene more surreal. Here was Goodell trying to play nice, embracing the town’s most wholesome tradition — kids loaning their bikes to Packers players before games — and still getting blasted like he was wearing a Bears jersey.
But can we blame the fans? They haven’t made peace with, when he said: “We’re not going to relent in our effort to make sure we have a disciplined culture in the NFL.” Given how uneven the punishments have been (Ray Rice, etc.), people saw this as total hypocrisy. Or when Roger said, “I think we can do it safely and properly. I don’t think 18 games is too much.” This was the league’s commissioner advocating for an 18-game season, even as fans and players were raising alarms about injuries.
So, we can understand the reason for these boos. But maybe, after all, these erratic decisions, maybe, we are about to see a rarer Roger W. Or that’s what a section of the fans think.
Roger Goodell’s latest idea has sent the fans into debating
When Roger Goodell floated the idea of speeding up the first round of the NFL Draft, fans didn’t exactly form a prayer circle. On The Pat McAfee Show, Goodell casually pitched chopping the timer down from 10 minutes to 7, with a one-time, two-minute extension if needed. His logic? Most teams don’t even use the full 10 anyway.
“I think only one team went the full 10,” he said, practically waving a red flag at the fan base already primed to boo him louder than a blown pass interference call in the NFC Championship. Some fans, surprisingly, tossed Roger a rare bouquet. One wrote, “Mythically rare W from Goodell.” You know it’s serious when Goodell lands in the win column.
Given that the first round dragged on for nearly four hours Thursday night, it’s no wonder a few fans were willing to spot him this rare dub. Another fan chimed in, echoing the exhausted vibe that probably had half the country reaching for coffee. “Great idea. I fell asleep in the middle of the first round. Didn’t get to watch the Giants trade back in for Dart live.”
Can you imagine? Draft night’s supposed to feel like fourth-and-goal with the game on the line. Not like waiting for your fantasy league auto-draft to kick in. Considering the first round still averaged a whopping 13.6 million viewers (an 11% jump from last year), you could say fans are willing to stick it out… Not snooze through it.
Still, not everyone was ready to let Goodell ride off on his bike without catching a few more metaphorical sacks. One fan kept it simple: “Boooo.” Another took it a step further, writing, “Loved the crowd booing Goodell all night lol. He’s just terrible at his job.” You could say the boo birds have better stamina than some rookie wideouts. And in fairness, Goodell has been the human shield for almost every scandal, rule change, and fine since 2006. So, he’s basically the NFL’s full-time heel, no matter what tweaks he suggests.
Finally, one fan wasn’t buying the whole “innovator Goodell” angle at all. They actually took issues with the Pat McAfee Show: “They’re just trying to make him look cool to the average person. PR campaign for Roger.” And honestly, you can’t blame the skepticism. After all, what’s more NFL than staging a “relatable commissioner” moment. That too, during a draft broadcast… Cue in ‘Smooth operator.’
Now, whether you’re Team Let Him Cook or firmly Team Boo Forever, Goodell’s clock-tinkering idea definitely stirred up the chatter. Maybe shaving down a few minutes won’t fix the boo chorus. But it might keep us all awake long enough.
The post NFL’s Roger Goodell Divides America With Latest Draft Idea to Pat McAfee After Getting Booed at Green Bay appeared first on EssentiallySports.