Commissioner search committee takes shape

NEW YORK – Owners Dan Rooney of Pittsburgh and Jerry Richardson of Carolina were appointed Wednesday to head the eight-member committee that will search for the successor to NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue.

The group was put together by Tagliabue to ensure that it includes diverse views among the owners. Rooney and Richardson are two of the owners Tagliabue trusts most. Others on the committee include Dallas’ Jerry Jones and Oakland’s Al Davis, both of whom have often clashed with the commissioner.

Robert Kraft of New England, Lamar Hunt of Kansas City, Mike McCaskey of Chicago and Woody Johnson of the New York Jets round out the group.

Tagliabue, who two weeks ago announced his intention to retire, reiterated last week that he thinks a successor can be in place by July.

The committee’s makeup is designed to avoid the kind of deadlock that occurred in 1989, when the original search committee was composed entirely of “old-guard” owners, including Rooney and Hunt. They recommended Jim Finks, then the New Orleans general manager, but were blocked by a group that included Jones.

That led to a long deadlock that finally ended in Tagliabue’s election when several owners, including Rooney, switched to Tagliabue. They subsequently became among his staunchest supporters while Jones and others often clashed with him.