The NFL came down hard on Ray Rice on Monday. Joe Rutland wonders why it took them so long
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Ray Rice is no longer with the Baltimore Ravens or in the National Football League. Too bad it took a video released on Monday to make it happen.
Rice, a star running back for the Ravens, recently had been given a two-game suspension by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for punching his then-fiancée and now-wife Janay Palmer inside an elevator of an Atlantic City, N.J., hotel in February. Video from the hotel released by TMZ showed Rice dragging an unconscious Palmer from the elevator. Rice was arrested for domestic violence, but he was assigned to a pre-trial diversion program rather than being charged with a crime. Rice’s two-game suspension from the NFL was handed down many months later, and drew sharp criticism as being woefully inadequate. This is the same league that issues far longer suspensions for smoking marijuana and in-game violence.
On Monday, TMZ Sports released a second video. This video shows what happened inside the elevator: Rice throwing a left punch and squarely hitting Palmer in the face, sending her down and rendering her unconscious. After seeing her down on the elevator floor, Rice looks like he’s saying some words to Palmer. Once they reach their floor, Rice drags her out like a caveman would his catch. It is not clear whether the NFL had previously had access to the second video when they handed down the original suspension.
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Once the video surfaced, the media firestorm began anew. Current and former NFL players went to Twitter and voiced their opinions. If you think all of them supported Rice, think again. Nearly all were unanimous in their disgust not only of Rice but for Goodell, too.
This time, it didn’t take long for the Ravens or the League to react. The Ravens terminated his contract and the NFL suspended Rice indefinitely.
This piece is not going to comprehensively cover domestic violence as a topic. I will say this, though. Rice will likely never play in the NFL again. If the NFL and Goodell, whose decision-making process really needs to be questioned, lift his indefinite suspension, who would pick him up? I don’t think any team would.
As an aside, I really think NFL owners should consider firing Goodell. I doubt they will, but I hope I’m proved wrong. Just think about this. If you are a father and any man – NFL player or not – was dating your daughter and cold-cocked her like Rice did, then what would your reaction be? Would you “turn the other cheek,” or go out and get all wrath-of-God Old Testament on Rice? Sports leagues cannot and should not condone this type of behavior by their employees.
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As a man, Rice’s actions were despicable. Cowardly. Potentially deadly. Domestic violence, though, is not something that just happens for NFL players, pro athletes or college athletes. No, it happens in our neighborhoods all of the time. Think I’m kidding? Go down to a police station and ask one of the officers if they get a lot of domestic dispute calls.
As for the NFL, they finally did the right thing. The open question is why on earth it took this long and why it took the release of this video for them to get it right. Other domestic violence matters await Goodell’s handling. For example, San Francisco 49ers defensive lineman Ray McDonald was arrested and charged with felony domestic violence just days after Goodell implemented a new domestic violence policy for the NFL. What happens to McDonald? 49ers Coach Jim Harbaugh on Friday, prior to his team’s 28-17 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, said McDonald would be available to play. This was a decision the team reached even with the evidence of McDonald’s arrest.
We shall see. Any future domestic violence decisions from the NFL will and should be held up to the discerning light of their lack of fully investigating the Rice situation. The sharp reaction to the NFL’s botched handling of this matter hopefully will get the NFL to get serious about this issue.
For Ray Rice, for the NFL, and for our culture as a whole … there is a whole lot of soul searching to be done.
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(Photo Credit: Nick Wass/AP)
I find this sort of reaction to be illogically visceral and short-sighted. I saw the video: I get it, it looked pretty bad, and Ray Rice probably belongs in jail, at least for a while. And I wouldn’t want to defend him. But as far as the universal accusation that the NFL and the justice system somehow condones such behavior is simply wrong. First of all, the NFL, like any employer, is not bound to impose punishment upon its employees for something that does not directly affect their job performance. In fact, I think an employer should be very limited… Read more »
“This was a decision the team reached even with the evidence of McDonald’s arrest.” Being arrested isn’t evidence of much. Ray Rice’s wife was also arrested the night the incident happened and the police watched all the surveillance video that the casino had. And honestly, McDonald is getting off easy compared to Rice simply because there wasn’t video of what he did. Just look at Floyd Mayweather. He will makes tens of millions of dollars this weekend a little over two years after he got out of jail after doing 90 days in jail after a plea bargain down from… Read more »
Of course first comment = but but but the lady of dumb!
Meanwhile, the NFL will take him back if he can still play. They keep rapists, murderers and dog killers on the payroll, why not Rice?
“The open question is why on earth it took this long and why it took the release of this video for them to get it right. ”
That’s not the only open question: Why would a woman marry a man after he knocked her out?: