Roger Goodell Is Now the Scapegoat

I am going to take a very unpopular position here. I am going to defend the NFL and Roger Goodell in their mishandling of the Ray Rice domestic violence suspension.

The NFL is a microcosm of America. There are overwhelmingly good people in the league. There are also bad people. Cheaters, drug users, alcoholics, murderers, rapists and (as brought vividly to the public conscience with an elevator security cam) wife/woman beaters. In this respect, the NFL is no different from any other field of employment in America, be it teachers, politicians, doctors or whatever. The big difference is that the NFL is almost completely in the public eye. (That and the multibillion dollar revenue, which we'll get back to.)

So is it any wonder that the Ravens and the NFL woefully mishandled the Ray Rice situation? The legal system struggles mightily with sexual assault and domestic violence issues. Just look at the Ray Rice case. His fiancee (whom he has since married) did not press charges and strongly supported him. I'm not saying that makes it OK. I realize that part of the problem is that many women feel that they deserve this or are willing to ignore it for love, money, stability or whatever. That puts a prosecution in a tough spot. Ray Rice avoided jail time and got pre-trial intervention, with the charges likely to be expunged.

So what is the NFL to do? The prosecutors gave him a slap on the wrist. His wife sat by his side and pled for lenience. Rice fully admitted to what he did and said he is in counseling to get help. Goodell gave him 2 weeks suspension. He could have given him more, but what is the precedent? It's more than the legal system did.

Obviously, that wasn't enough, and the subsequent release of the in-elevator view has sparked a firestorm of what did who know when. It doesn't matter. This is a position that the NFL, or any other workplace cannot win in.

I think Goodell's biggest mistake is taking on the role of sheriff  when he became commissioner. There is no way to clean up the NFL, just liek there is no way to clean up America or any society. There are going to be bad eggs. It's an impossible standard for Goodell to be judge, jury and executioner for everyone in the NFL. Just look at our legal system to see how complicated it has become to simply dole out justice in America. The NFL is a SPORT!!! It's not a courtroom.

My solution to this mess if I am advising the NFL? I think Roger Goodell should step back from his role as moral policeman of the NFL. As commissioner, he should review and dole out punishment regarding on-field issues only. PEDs, drug use, blows to the head, spygate, bounties. Anything off the field would be a legal matter. Then, each individual team would be free to decide if a player needs any additional punishment - just like any other employer. In this case, Ray Rice would have been fired from almost any job if this had come to light. If the Ravens decided to keep him to make the team better, they would be BLASTED by fans and media, and would feel an impact financially. No different than if a teacher put his wife in the hospital. He'd be fired.

In no way is this a defense of Ray Rice or what he did. Make that point clear. I am just trying to say that Roger Goodell and the NFL have painted themselves into a corner. It's an impossible task for them to maintain, but they have tried to do this because of the money. They want to protect and grow the game, but you can never prevent the bad apples from doing bad things. I think America is well beyond the naive mindset that puts football players on a pedestal. Most reasonable people realize football players have the same problems as the rest of society.

Let's let society deal with the players when they do wrong. Let the NFL stick to football.

A Very Special Blog Post

I'm going to take some time off from the NFL. It isn't just because of everything recently with Ray Rice, although that was the straw that broke the proverbial back, it's because the NFL is out of control. And, repeat after me - IT'S JUST A FUCKING GAME!

We can start with Ray Rice knocking his fiancee out cold. If you've seen the video, it's difficult for me to judge which is the worst part - the fact that he appears to strike with zero hesitation, the visceral, raw violence of the act, or the staggering lack of concern from Rice as Janay Palmer's head strikes the elevator railing and she lays unconscious on the ground. Disgust can be evenly distributed, starting with Rice, moving to the prosecutors who viewed this video and decided not to press charges, to the NFL and the Baltimore Ravens who took almost no action until it was clear that their attempt to blame Parker had blown up in their faces. Nevermind who saw which video and when, what do you think someone getting knocked unconscious entails? It's horrifying, no matter who is perpetrating it upon whom.

The whole concussions ordeal plays a part.

The Jonathan Martin bullying, racism, and organizational support for such actions plays a part.

But I guess it's really just my overall perception of the NFL today - it's out of control. This isn't about setting a good example for my kids (won't somebody think of the children?!). If I'm relying on the NFL to teach my kids about how to treat women and bullying and racism, I'm a failure as a parent. No, this is because IT'S JUST A FUCKING GAME! And we have adults across the country that are simply way too invested in this. John Walters said something really great today commenting on another media personality's comment about how (paraphrasing) she was struggling to reconcile her values and beliefs with her love for football. His response - you don't! Why do people feel the need to reconcile their values and beliefs with a freaking game?! I mean, I love soccer, but I'm probably going to pull my boy off his soccer team if their team name is the Little Hitlers and they're asked to wear adorable little mustaches.

America is way too addicted to the NFL, and there seems to be a notion that there is nothing we can do about it. But there are things we can do - turn off the tv, don't buy tickets, don't buy merchandise. The only thing the NFL listens to is money.

I love football. I love watching football. And I hope that the NFL can get their shit together enough so that I can watch and enjoy the games again without feeling like a horrible person or a spectator at the Coliseum in Rome. It's fall, the weather is nice, kids have soccer. I'm sure I can find something better to do than spend Sunday afternoon (and Monday night, and now Thursday night too because,  NFL) on the couch - unless of course, you know, Little Hitlers. Although the mustaches would remind me of a virile, young Ian Rush

2 Down, 10 to Go

Some quick thoughts 2 games into a surprisingly (so far) enjoyable Notre Dame football season.

Everett Golson
I can't say if ND would have dropped either of these first two games with Rees at the helm, but I can say they wouldn't have been as comfortable. There have been at least a half dozen plays each of the first two games that would've been crushing setbacks with Rees under center. Golson's ability to elude the rush and keep plays alive and then just toss a frozen rope is purely something that Rees was not capable of. I'm pleasantly surprised at how good he's been this early

DeVaris who?
I was really concerned about the receiving options when Daniels was suspended, but Fuller, Prosise (55yd drop not included), Carlisle, and Brown have been awesome. These new receivers have speed and hands and have been really fun to watch.

KeiVarae who?
I was equally concerned with losing potential All American corner back Russell, but Riggs and Luke have filled in so well this defense hasn't missed a beat. Granted, there hasn't exactly been a murderer's row of receiving opposition, but the secondary has acquitted itself nicely through two games.

BVG
Diaco was your prom date's dad. BVG is the guy you'd asked to buy beer for you after prom. There's no way ND is getting the contributions from the underclassmen with Diaco still in charge. There's also no way that BVG doesn't drive a Camaro, likely an IROC-Z.