Published October 22, 2026 06:19 AM
49ers owner Jed York attended the league meeting this week upon the conclusion of his six-game suspension. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell defended that suspension as an appropriate consequence of York violating the same personal conduct policy that applies to players and everyone else in the league.
York pleaded no contest to two misdemeanors after he was arrested in a prostitution sting in East Palestine, Ohio. Goodell said at the league meeting that the personal conduct policy “applies to owners, commissioners, everybody else, players.” That’s true, but the $500,000 fine York paid is a pittance compared to what players can lose if they receive a comparable suspension. A player who is suspended six games loses one-third of his salary for that season; $500,000 is nothing remotely close to one-third of what York or any other owner makes in a season.
“We went through a full process, obviously, to understand the facts, understand the issues. Looked at it under the context of our personal conduct policy,” Goodell said.
Goodell said the league stands by its personal conduct policy and that the discipline York faced was appropriate for the violation he committed.
“It’s something we feel strongly about,” Goodell said. “We think we need to represent ourselves and our organizations properly. We saw a violation and we dealt with it from a discipline standpoint. That concluded now, so he’ll be back representing the 49ers.”