Cardinals ordered to pay ex-VP Terry McDonough $3M for defamation - ESPN

An NFL arbitrator ordered the Arizona Cardinals to pay $3 million to former executive Terry McDonough for «false and defamatory» statements the team made about him to the media, according to a decision filed in federal court on Monday.

In a 62-page decision dated March 29, Jeffrey Mishkin, the arbitrator appointed by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, determined the Cardinals and their owner, Michael Bidwill, defamed McDonough «with malice» in a multipage statement to media organizations that accused McDonough of spousal abuse and neglect of his disabled adult daughter — allegations McDonough has denied.

McDonough's attorney, Mike Caspino, filed the decision in U.S. District Court in Arizona on Monday as part of McDonough's request to the court to confirm the award.

«Despite what we consider to be a fundamentally unfair arbitration process, Terry McDonough is the first person ever to win against an NFL owner,» Caspino said in a statement about Monday's court filing. «Why the NFL has not held Michael Bidwill accountable remains a mystery.»

The Cardinals issued their own statement later Monday that read: «We are pleased with the arbitrator's decision dismissing all of Terry McDonough's employment claims and finding that there was nothing improper about his dismissal from the team. As for Mr. McDonough's other claim, we respect the arbitrator's determination that our initial statement went too far. We accept responsibility for that statement and are grateful that the arbitration is now resolved.»

The NFL, meanwhile, declined to comment to ESPN on the arbitrator's ruling.

Mishkin dismissed McDonough's other claims of unlawful retaliation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and invasion of privacy. McDonough brought