I promised myself I wouldn’t write about this. There is too much controversy in the NFL right now and I told myself I would stay away. Yet here I am writing this blog post. I never imagined a day where the National Football League would deliver more controversy than the war on terror. It has become so bad that the league would receive good press by naming Henry Earl (the world’s most arrested man – over 1500 arrests in four decades) a general manager. The National Football League has earned the rights to the biggest sports scandal in history. Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods and the 1919 Chicago White Sox can all rest easy (although the Sox have been “resting” for some time now). By now you have heard the storylines: Ray Rice knocks out wife, Adrian Peterson beats sons, did Wes Welker pop molly; the list goes on and on. Athletes within the NFL are being arrested for domestic violence, child abuse and drug or alcohol charges. According to a USA Today report, 2014 has seen 40 arrests involving NFL athletes. Sadly, this isn’t the biggest issue in the league. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is under a microscope for the punishments (or lack of) he has handed down to those 40 athletes. He has lacked consistency when suspending various athletes following their legal issues. Goodell released a statement on Friday proclaiming he and the National Football League have been “doing wrong” in the handling of the legal matters. Mere hours later, ESPN’s Outside the Lines released an investigative report that the NFL and the Baltimore Ravens were aware of the specifics within the Ray Rice case, leading to a “purposeful misdirection” of the events that led to Rice’s arrest. Goodell has promised to implement several new personal conduct policies within the league. Is it too little too late? Of course it is. But there was no denying something needed to be done. But a change is also necessary by the fans. Despite the video release of Rice punching his then-fiance Janay in an elevator, football fans still arrived at games in the signature number 27 jerseys. Many fans, even women, actually defended the recently suspended Rice. “We shouldn’t be involved in their personal life,” LaTonya Jones told USA Today. “It had nothing to do with his job. He should not have lost his job,” said Robin Manahan in the same article. Fans sharing these opinions are stepping over a very interesting line. A professional athlete should not lose his job despite being arrested on domestic violence charges, but if a doctor were to be arrested on the same charge he should carry on practicing? How many women would line up at the clinic to visit a medical professional that had been seen knocking his wife unconscious in a video released nationally? I’m going to assume the list is short. I pray for our society that it is. The Ravens have since offered fans a jersey exchange, allowing them to trade their Ray Rice jerseys for a different player on the team. Good publicity move Baltimore. Too little, too late. Pictures have been released of Adrian Peterson’s son showing cuts, bruises and welts. The former MVP has insisted he was disciplining his 4-year-old and stated “never do I go overboard” in a text to the child’s mother. Images of the child would suggest otherwise. But much like Baltimore fans, a handful of Vikings faithful could still be spotted with number 28 jerseys over the weekend. “We don’t want him out (of the NFL). He was only disciplining his child, that’s fine,” one fan told Boston.com. “Is there new evidence that has come out or is it just a publicity stunt to get the district attorney’s name in the news?” asked another fan at the Vikings vs. Patriots game. Added another: “everyone has made mistakes. He admitted to his mistake and he’ll get through it.” Sigh. My hope in humanity is dissolving quicker than the alcohol in these delusional fans stomachs. I’m all for the “innocent until proven guilty” argument. But how embarrassed will those fans feel if they are currently supporting a soon-to-be convicted child abuser? Imagine if fans completely boycotted the league, even if it were only for one week. What if no one attended games across the country? What impact would it have if there were not a single television turned to an NFL game on Sunday? That would send a message to the NFL that we won’t support a league unwilling to take a stand against violence and abuse. It would show that playing professional sports is a privilege that should be left to athletes who can abide by the law. It isn’t realistic and therefore is not even worth considering. But it is worth noting fans can also incorporate change. Roger Goodell and the National Football League must decide how to move forward with a tarnished league. But we can make sure the league has an honorable following. That is, if it becomes worthy enough to follow again. Please take a moment to learn about domestic violence, child abuse and drug/alcohol addiction. These problems affect more than the athletes we idolize on television.
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AuthorRichie is a small-town boy chasing big-city dreams. When he's not involved with sports, he's spending time with his wife, Fallon; their yorkie, Tinker; and their Rhodesian Ridgeback, Rosie. Archives
April 2016
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