Hines Ward -- What REALLY Shocks Me About Roger Goodell ...

Hines Ward says he's blown away by Roger Goodell -- telling TMZ Sports he's SHOCKED that with all of the NFL's resources, the Commish says he couldn't get his hands on the elevator tape.

"When you're the NFL and you've got a bunch of FBI [agents], I'm pretty sure they could have got their hands on that tape before they made a ruling."

The former Pittsburgh Steelers superstar -- who's now an NFL commentator on NBC -- says Goodell MUST be held responsible for embarrassing the league ... noting, "He dropped the ball on this one."