Ray Rice has decided to appeal his suspension by the NFL, and in the process of doing so has put in a formal written request that commissioner Roger Goodell relinquish his authority of the appeal of personal-conduct policy cases, per Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. Goodell has already presented conflicting accounts of what exactly Rice told the NFL in his original hearing. Ravens General Manager Ozzie Newsome has gone on the record saying that Rice did not lie in his meeting with the commissioner, and with that information out, there is a natural conflict of interest with Goodell having anything more to do with this case. Rice’s argument for appeal will be that there has not been any new information to come out regarding the incident and that Goodell’s further punishment was strictly based on public perception.
