Teams Can Be Fined Under Conduct Policy

ATLANTA, May 20 -- The NFL will begin fining teams under its personal conduct policy, Commissioner Roger Goodell said Tuesday at a meeting of owners.

The league will receive a portion of the player's withheld pay whenever a player is suspended under the policy, Goodell said. The percentage that goes to the league will increase for subsequent violations by players from the same team.

"We will continue to address this issue," Goodell said. "It is still a priority for us."

When Goodell toughened the policy last year, he included a provision allowing him to punish any team with a significant number of offending players.

A 17th Game?

Goodell and the owners continue to discuss the possibility of adding a 17th regular season game and perhaps shortening the preseason by a game. Goodell said the possibility is "on the table," but the league is not yet ready to present a proposal to the players' union, which would have to approve such a change.

"We are not satisfied with the quality of the preseason right now," Goodell said. "We'd like to improve on that."

Goodell said that the additional home game could alternate annually by conference, meaning AFC teams could get nine home games each one season and NFC clubs could get nine apiece the next. . . .

Goodell said he had no plans "at this point" to appoint an independent investigator to look into the videotaping scandal involving the New England Patriots, as Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) last week called for the NFL to do. . . .

The owners awarded the 2012 Super Bowl to Indianapolis. The other finalists were Houston and Arizona. . . . The owners took no vote on a proposal by the Kansas City Chiefs to restrict players' hair length during games, and plan to continue to study the issue. . . .

Goodell said he will meet soon with suspended cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones to determine if Jones will be allowed to join the Cowboys' offseason workouts. . . . The league plans to issue a code of fan conduct to attempt to curb offensive behavior in the stands, Goodell said. . . . The Atlanta Falcons announced that they'd signed quarterback Matt Ryan, the third overall selection in the NFL draft, to a six-year contract. A source said the deal is worth $72 million, including $34.75 million guaranteed.

St. Louis Rams owner Chip Rosenbloom issued a statement denying a report that the team was for sale and might be moved back to Los Angeles. Georgia Frontiere, who moved the Rams from Anaheim to St. Louis in 1995, died in January. The team is run by Rosenbloom, Frontiere's son, and her daughter, Lucia Rodriguez.