fear he may quit over public scrutiny

The vultures are circling over Roger Goodell and pressuring NFL owners to dump the commissioner for what has become Ray Rice (Video) Gate.

So far, it’s not working. The owners still have his back. Rice committed the crime. Goodell did not. There is no undercurrent to fire him, no small faction that wants him out. In fact, owners are more concerned Goodell is going to get fed up and quit.

Of course, if it turns out Goodell was lying about not seeing the elevator video before Monday or lying that he had no knowledge of anybody else in his office seeing it or that he has not told the truth about other crucial events and the meeting with Rice and Janay Palmer, then the game changes and he could get fired by a three-quarters vote of the 32 owners.

Even though the owners trust Goodell — he runs their $10 billion-a-year business — there has to be some uneasiness that he’s getting scrutinized so intensely and what could potentially come out of the investigation run by former FBI chief Robert Mueller III.

Mark Ganis is the president of Sportscorp Ltd. He has worked with more than 20 NFL teams over the years on issues involving stadiums and financial matters. He’s close to most of the owners and has spoken to several over the last few days about Goodell.

“There is zero thought of asking him to leave, but there is some concern that he may decide he doesn’t need to have his name and credibility dragged through the mud as would happen with a politician,” Ganis said Thursday. “The owners are completely supportive of him. They feel badly that he is taking all this heat.”

Based on what the owners know about the Rice case right now, Goodell’s employment is secure. Two things about having a job that paid $44.2 million two years ago: Goodell has enough money that he doesn’t need to work. But it’s also tough to walk away from huge paydays with his contract not expiring until the spring of 2019.