Who is Jeff Pash? NFL's lawyer accused of having "cozy relationship" with Bruce Allen
As the fallout from the investigation into the Washington Football Team continues, Jeff Pash and Bruce Allen have become the latest people to become embroiled in the controversy. Jeff Pash has been accused of having a "cozy relationship" with Bruce Allen that could be seen as compromising his professional integrity.
Let us take a look at Jeff Pash's career and his relationship with Bruce Allen.
Who is Jeff Pash and what's his relationship with Bruce Allen?
Jeff Pash joined the NFL in 1997 and is presently serving as the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for the league. In his job, he oversees labor relations, security and internal audits.
Prior to joining the NFL, he served as Senior Vice President and General Counsel at the National Hockey League. His career in sports law began while he was at the Washington, D. C. firm of Covington & Burling, where he eventually became a partner in 1988.
He is involved in teaching sports law to students at Georgetown University Law School and University of Virginia Law School.
While his experience highlights him as a model professional, recent interactions between Jeff Pash and Bruce Allen have come to light that cast doubt on his integrity. For example, when the Washington franchise was fined for a fake injury report in 2013, Jeff Pash wrote to Bruce Allen rescinding the entire $15,000 fine overruling his own staff.
When Bruce Allen wrote to Jeff Pash worried that Roger Goodell would take action against the franchise for free agent signings, the latter assured him not to worry about it.
In addition to a relationship that cast doubt on the professionalism of Jeff Pash, both he and Bruce Allen were involved in several off-color exchanges, keeping in theme with the entire controversy. When Bruce Allen shared a song with him that was supposed to be part of the franchise's Latino outreach, Jeff Pash got back by saying it might decrease in popularity if the wall (at the southern border) got built.
Former WFT President Bruce Allen shared an audio file of a team song aimed at attracting Latino fans, Jeff Pash responded,
“I am not sure this song will be as popular after the wall gets built.”
Source: @nytimes https://t.co/9ZQHpnX266
When controversy arose about the Washington franchise's former nickname, which was an unambiguous racial epithet, Bruce Allen sent information to Jeff Pash about one of the senators most vocal about wanting to change the name and how she had a Native American mascot in her school. Jeff Pash seemed to agree with Bruce Allen's leaning on that communication. Together they waded into other political debates as well, some with racial overtones.
I’m legit angry!
Former WFT President Bruce Allen and Jeff Pash talking about black people. https://t.co/N1ZOISz6H9
At the end of it all, no one comes away unscathed. The more information leaked instead of being transparently released by the NFL, the more it harms everyone's reputation.