Fall guy for NFL's deflate-gate defeat won't be Roger Goodell

Sorry, grave-dancing New England Patriots fans. Roger Goodell isn't going anywhere.

Yes, Tom Brady won his case against the NFL (pending appeal, of course, because of course) and likely will remain suspension-free for the duration of the 2015 NFL season.

And yes, one might argue that Goodell, the grand poobah of the league, comes out of this decision — again, pending appeal, which the NFL could win — looking worse.

But that won't affect Goodell's job status, at least not in and of itself. Goodell is, among other things, a very well-compensated puppet. Oh sure, he appears to have gone rogue on some things, and there's little doubt his iron-fist campaign was a big reason how he won the job (running as the "different from Paul Tagliabue" candidate) and how he's carried out his first nine seasons on the job.

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The league's owners pay Goodell's massive salary and control his fate. As long as the league makes big money, he likely stays. But what about the legal counsel Goodell has been getting? The league has spent a lot of time in court in recent years going head to head against the NFLPA and hasn't fared too well. With each successive case — from StarCaps to Ray Rice/Greg Hardy/Adrian Peterson last year to deflate-gate now — it reflects just as poorly on the NFL's legal team as anyone else.

It starts with NFL executive vice president and general counsel Jeff Pash. He's Goodell's legal consigliere, and though there is a kitchen cabinet of lawyers and all their billable hours behind Pash, he's the guy closest to Goodell's ear. Pash and Adolpho Birch, the NFL's vice president of labor policy and government affairs, also became key figures for blame in the mishandling of the Rice debacle.

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It was Pash and/or his minions who urged the NFL to file this case in federal court against Brady, and also do so in the home court so to speak. Losing in the shadows of 345 Park Avenue, and doing so with Judge Richard M. Berman question Pash's role in the investigation (he was allowed a final edit and review of "independent" investigator Ted Wells' report) and his inavailability (Pash was not made available for the hearing, which appeared to irritate Berman) is a significant blow to him personally.

“Denied the opportunity to examine Pash at the arbitral hearing, Brady was prejudiced,” Judge Berman wrote in his decision. “He was foreclosed from exploring, among other things, whether the Pash/Wells Investigation was truly ‘independent,’ and how and why the NFL’s General Counsel came to edit a supposedly independent investigation report.

“Brady was also prejudiced because there was no other witness, apart from Pash, who was ‘as competent to address the substantive core of the claim.’ ”

Remember when Patriots owner Robert Kraft was said to be irate with Goodell after the initial fine, suspension and revocation fo draft picks was handed down? Perhaps initially Kraft was. But they talked it out, and — working theory here — Goodell might have told Kraft, Hey, Robert, I know you're pissed, but I'm being asked to protect The Shield and the entire league here ... and besides, Jeff Pash thought it was a good idea.

Now read Kraft's statement after the Brady reversal. Check out whose name isn't mentioned but whose appears to be firmly implied (bold emphasis added):

"Laywers at the league" — any idea to whom Kraft might be referring? Kraft and Goodell are on the mend, relationship-wise, but Kraft appears to have shifted his ire toward Pash.

OK, just to keep our tongue firmly planted in our cheek a moment longer, maybe Cris Carter was right: Maybe you do need to have a fall guy. Might it be Pash, a man who pulls in around $8 million annually in salary, be that guy?

Goodell's current deal runs through 2019, and who knows what a buyout might cost ... $100 million? More? He's not going anywhere. He's the shield for The Shield. But Pash could be an easy mark if the NFL wanted to slough off blame for its David Shula-esque win percentage in court cases.

One thing Pash has to fall back on: the CBA itself. He was a crucial element toward gaining the NFL's clear advantage over the NFLPA in the last round of negotiations back in 2011 during the lockout. We assume he was a big reason why the league locked out the players in the first place, and those strong-arm tactics worked well even though the public perception of the league potentially interrupting the season couldn't have been worse at the time.

No one talks about that now. But Pash might have to be quick to remind his fellow league mates just how much he saved their bacon back then in order to ensure job security now after losing the Brady case and failing — despite multiple urgings from Judge Berman — to settle with Brady and the union out of court.

It's likely nothing will happen immediately, as a reversal on appeal could shift the narrative back into the league's court. But that's not happening to start this season, and with Brady set to take the field on Sept. 10 in the opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers, it's an awkward place for Pash and the legal team to be and sweat out over these next key months ahead.

Goodell knows his role; he's the money guy, and that won't change. He's not going anywhere anytime soon, and the owners' show of support for him is a pretty strong indication of that, even if the narrow-sighted public keeps honing in on him as the sole proprietor of this mess.

Will Pash or Birch be fall guys? Who knows? But they can't feel safe with their status — not the way Goodell can, anyway.

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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm