NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has been fielding relentless attacks from the sports media in recent weeks for his seemingly inconsistent comments as to whether or not players should stand for the national anthem. But a mysterious tweeter with the handle @forargument, and under the name “Jones smith” has been a staunch defender of the embattled commissioner.
@forargument has been getting in Twitter arguments arguing with other outlets in defense of Goodell, especially @profootballtalk, the account for NBC Sports’s NFL blog.
Anyone passionately supporting Goodell on social media raises eyebrows, considering this is a man often loathed by both players and fans alike.
So who is this mystery tweeter? @forargument has no followers, no profile picture, and hasn’t sent out many tweets since the account’s creation in 2014.
The Wall Street Journal’s Andrew Beaton did a little bit of detective work and found out who Goodell’s No. 1 fan is. It’s Jane Skinner Goodell, his wife!
“It was a REALLY silly thing to do and done out of frustration—and love,” Skinner Goodell said in a written statement. “As a former media member, I’m always bothered when the coverage doesn’t provide a complete and accurate picture of a story. I’m also a wife and a mom. I have always passionately defended the hard-working guy I love—and I always will. I just may not use Twitter to do so in the future!”
“Sounds like what she did is what every spouse in America would want to do,” said NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy.
You may recall that Skinner was a longtime TV newser, both local and national. Skinner joined Fox News in 1998, anchoring the 2 p.m. edition of Fox News Live, and later Happening Now until 2010, when she left the TV news business.
“To do justice to this new life, I’ve decided to take a break from this business,” she said during her on-air farewell with Jon Scott.
Update: Skinner Goodell apparently deleted the account after spilling the beans.