Why do fans boo commissioner Roger Goodell on the NFL draft?

NFL fans and teams love tradition, and with the NFL draft comes one of the most bizarre in all of sports. Everyone present will loudly boo the league commissioner.

This is a tradition that began with the current commissioner, Roger Goodell. His predecessor, Paul Tagliabue, was roundly applauded when he came out. Even in the opening years of Goodell’s tenure, he was applauded, if somewhat more lightly, and the booing didn’t begin in earnest until about a decade into his reign.

The shift seems to have begun in earnest when the draft began to travel. Between 1964 and 2014, the NFL draft was held in New York City. But when they decided to go on the road and connect better with the fans around the league, the fans took the opportunity to let Roger Goodell know just what they thought of him.

At first, there were a smattering of boos, mixed with some applause as well. But by bringing the show to cities like Chicago and Philadelphia, cities whose fanbases felt ignored by the NFL, the stage was set for an outpouring of discontent.

Whatever Goodell may have thought about it in the early days, he seems to have warmed to the idea, pausing to allow fans to boo him as he makes his way to the podium, even going so far as to gee the crowd up in Las Vegas.

Every fan loves to revel in the idea that their team is treated especially unfairly. And for most, they have a focal point for that angst in Roger Goodell.