‘Your conduct has brought embarrassment and ridicule upon yourself, your club and the NFL, and has damaged the reputation of players throughout the league. You have engaged in conduct detrimental to the NFL and failed to live up to the standards expected of NFL players.’

Strong words from new NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, written in a letter to Tennessee Titans’ cornerback Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones and Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry. Commissioner Goodell is a man on a mission to fix the personal conduct of the NFL, and he has told the Titans not to bother giving Pacman a uniform next year and the Bengals that they will be without Henry’s services for half of the season.

Since 2005, Jones and Henry have been arrested a combined nine times (five for Pacman, who has been questioned in over 10 incidents, and four for Henry, who served a two-game suspension from Goodell last season). Henry is one of nine Bengals who were arrested in a nine-month period, bringing embarrassment to the league and a team whose players were wearing jumpsuit orange on and off the field.

Titans’ owner Bud Adams has responded to the commissioner’s shutting down of Pacman by releasing a statement that there was no guarantee that the Titans would welcome Jones back when or if he is reinstated after the suspension.

Thankfully for the Titans and the Bengals, these suspensions were issued under the old personal conduct policy of the NFL. The new, tougher policy gives Goodell the power to discipline the teams as well for neglecting to properly deal with repeat offenders on their rosters.

Roger Goodwell has been on the NFL scene for less than a full year and he has already proved that he will not rest until the athletes of his league shape up and the image of the league has been further improved. Maybe Commissioner Goodwell took the wrong job by replacing Paul Tagliabue and should have been lobbying to take the place of NBA commissioner David Stern.