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Former Washington Football Team cheerleaders Melanie Coburn and Ana Nunez showed up at the NFL's Fall League Meeting in New York on Tuesday to hand-deliver a letter asking the NFL to be transparent in its investigation into their former employers' workplace misconduct. But later that day, Commissioner Roger Goodell held a press conference clarifying that the league has no intentions of releasing a written report as a way to protect those who participated in the investigation.
Coburn, who came forward about her experiences while working as a cheerleader, disagrees.
"I think it’s completely false," she told Fox News in a phone interview on Thursday. "Using us and our anonymity to shield the NFL is just a very cowardly thing to do."
Lisa Banks and Debra Katz, two attorneys representing more than 40 former WFT employees, issued a statement directed at Goodell on Wednesday echoing that sentiment.
"Yesterday, during your press conference at the NFL owners' meeting, you made a number of misstatements about the NFL's actions, or inaction, related to the Washington Football Team investigation and those who participated in that investigation, including our clients. We write, once again, to make our clients' position as clear as possible and to ask you to refrain from suggesting the NFL has not created or produced an investigatory request at their request."
"It is simply not true, as you suggest, that because some of our clients wanted anonymity that they, therefore, did not want a report produced or made public," the letter continued.
Coburn is among those former employees who have been pushing the league to issue a written report of its findings following a 10-month investigation.
"There are ways to release reports with names redacted, and if there’s any delicate matters they can go through and withhold some of that information. It’s been done, it’s done all the time, and it’s unfortunate that they are using that," Coburn told Fox News.
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"I know Beth Wilkinson is a very esteemed lawyer," Coburn said of the attorney hired to conduct the investigation. "She’s renowned and she’s very respected in this area, and I'm sure that she had a working document and that she is capable of producing such [a] report that would be sensitive to everybody that participated."
A Washington cheerleader dances on the field during a timeout at FedExField. (Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports)
Coburn also spoke to Goodell’s comments that Washington owner Dan Snyder and the organization as a whole were held accountable, referencing the "unprecedented" $10 million fine the team was forced to pay.
"That is not a fine and that is not a punishment that fits the behavior and the years of toxic work culture and serial sexual harassment and even assault in some cases," Coburn said. "I don’t think that he’s been held accountable."
On Wednesday, Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis became the first NFL owner to come forward saying he believed the league should publish a written report, "especially with some of the things that were, I guess, charged."
"It was encouraging that Mark Davis came forward. I appreciate his support," Coburn said. "I also think he has a personal interest in this with losing his head coach the way he did."
Owner Mark Davis of the Las Vegas Raiders looks on before a game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field At Mile High on Oct. 17, 2021 in Denver, Colo. (Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
Jon Gruden resigned as head coach of the Raiders earlier this month after leaked emails that were reviewed as part of the NFL’s investigation revealed racist, homophobic and misogynistic comments Gruden made to former Washington executive Bruce Allen between 2010-2018.
"Mark Davis is dealing with a lot of collateral damage in this whole process," Coburn suggested.
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Tanya Snyder, who was named co-CEO after Dan Snyder announced he would be stepping down from day-to-day operations, attended the meeting and, according to a report from Sports Illustrated, gave a prepared statement that failed to address the victims. One person in the room described the statement as "tone-deaf" and two owners reportedly agreed with that characterization.
"I will say Tonya’s comments, again, are very tone-deaf, and it really makes us feel invisible as it has since she went on with Adam Schefter," Coburn said of Snyder’s appearance on an ESPN podcast last month.
Washington owner Dan Snyder, left, sits with his wife Tanya Snyder in the audience as Ron Rivera is introduced as Washington's new head coach Jan. 2, 2020 . (Photo by John McDonnell/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
"Rather than caring for the victims, she talked [on the podcast] about how difficult it was for her and her family over the past year. I think that she has been tone-deaf since taking a position of power within the team, and it shows me that nothing’s changed in regards to the culture, the people at the top leading the team."
Washington declined to comment on the report.
While Coburn said it is "encouraging" that others in the room reportedly shared her concern, she’s focused on Nov. 4, the deadline by which the NFL must submit all documents and communication about the probe to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee.
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