Glauber: Goodell should reduce Roethlisberger's suspension

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger could learn as early as Friday whether NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will uphold his six-game suspension for his involvement in an alleged sexual assault in March, or whether the punishment will be reduced because Roethlisberger has satisfied Goodell's criteria for a more lenient punishment.

The two will meet at the NFL's New York headquarters and will discuss Roethlisberger's behavior since the March 5 incident, in which Roethlisberger was accused of sexually assaulting a Georgia college student after a night of drinking at a bar in Milledgeville, Ga.

The NFL will not comment on the meeting or what might happen, but here's the sense I'm getting: Goodell has been satisfied with Roethlisberger's progress in not only coming to terms with his situation but in showing a maturity that simply wasn't there before the incident. Barring an unexpected development, it is expected that Goodell will reduce the suspension from six games to four, perhaps as soon as today.

There are reports that Roethlisberger's attorney, David Cornwell, will seek to have the suspension reduced even further - perhaps to three games - but Goodell is not likely to go any lower than four. In fact, when he announced the suspension in April, he explicitly said Roethlisberger could have the punishment reduced to four games if he followed the league's behavioral guidelines.

By all accounts, Roethlisberger has done just that. He has been lauded by teammates for being more approachable and has made several community-service appearances. "For many years, people didn't know what was really going on with Ben," veteran wide receiver Hines Ward told reporters. "He's opening up to guys, he's being more personal. I think he really understands the situation. He's definitely working on it. He knows you can't take football and all the things you've been blessed with for granted."

Roethlisberger is the first player suspended by Goodell under the league's personal-conduct policy without being arrested, charged or convicted of a crime. Goodell invoked his powers under the collective-bargaining agreement, decreeing that Roethlisberger's behavior was conduct detrimental to the league.

But Goodell doesn't simply mete out punishment for its own sake; his ultimate goal is to change players' behavior before allowing them back into the league's good graces. It appears that has been precisely the case with Roethlisberger. If he has truly come to terms with what he did - and he does seem genuinely remorseful - then Goodell is right to consider reducing the suspension by two games.

Former quarterback Terry Bradshaw, a two-time Super Bowl MVP and a Hall of Famer, said Thursday at a kickoff luncheon for the AdvoCare Independence Bowl that Roethlisberger should serve out the full six-game suspension.

"Going to bars - treating women like that; oh, my God," Bradshaw said. "I pray they don't cut it to four games. I hope they leave it at six. There is no excuse for that. The egos get out of hand."

Bradshaw probably isn't alone in that belief. But Goodell himself set up the parameters of the suspension, and in the process, he offered further motivation for Roethlisberger to change his behavior by reducing the suspension. He appears to have fulfilled Goodell's requirements.

In fact, Goodell last month said Roethlisberger was going "above and beyond" what the league had asked. "I'm very encouraged by what he's doing," he said at the Steelers' training camp Aug. 5. "He hasn't just done what he's been told to do, I think he's worked hard to really try to improve and focus on himself and understand what he's been through and what he's going to do differently going forward. I think that's a very positive thing."

And unless something has changed in the last month, there's nothing wrong with Goodell reducing the punishment.