Football is king. For years now it has dominated America as the most popular sport, and the Super Bowl is yearly the most viewed program on television.

However, this year has seen a dip in the ratings. The immediate scapegoat would be Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the league. For years he’s been commended for bringing in money for the league, but could this be the end for him? Here’s how:

Though Goodell is the commissioner, the actual team owners are the ones in control. The money he makes the league goes directly to them, and he’s made them lots so despite a low public opinion, Goodell has remained.

So how does a low rating affect this? Basically, the NFL makes an overwhelming majority of its yearly revenue through televised games, the most popular way to watch them.

So what if say, CBS, who has some mega-million dollar deal with the league to televise weekly Sunday games sees the ratings have fell, which is then followed by a drop in viewership? CBS sees this, then wants to restructure their deal with the NFL for less money because it’s now, hypothetically, worth less.

When this happens, less money is now flowing into the owners, who would turn to Goodell for answers.

That’s not the only problem with Goodell. Along with a bad public opinion, notable players around the league have been very critical of him.

All-pro cornerback Richard Sherman has publicly ripped Goodell on a number of issues. He says Goodell has “too much power” regarding investigations, fines, and suspensions, which Goodell has botched.

He has a terrible track record with investigations, highlighted by the mockery that was “Deflategate,” a small infraction with no real proof that blew up into a national story and wasn’t resolved for over year.

Then there was another all-pro corner Josh Norman who said, regarding Goodell, “Horrible. He’s straight horrible.” Norman was recently flagged and fined for an imaginary “bow and arrow” celebration.

This is another problem with Goodell. He is becoming stricter and stricter about celebrations. Many people have prompted to saying that NFL stands for “No Fun League.”

These issues facing Goodell are cumulating into a storm. Could this be the end of his commissioner reign? Only time will tell.