Ray Rice struck his fiancé in an elevator and knocked her unconscious. Let's be clear: the facts of this case have never been in dispute since it occurred in February 2014. The NFL followed its existing policy and cleared him to play after 2 games since the civil punishment was served by attending a class. The fault of his lack of punishment lies not with the NFL but with the state of New Jersey, by allowing a man to avoid criminal punishment for assault with the wife-beaters-equivalent of traffic school. But when the NFL "discovered" that the public found that response offensive, they developed a new policy- 6 games for the first offense of domestic violence and expulsion for the second. The fact that an employer has to write a policy specific for dealing with domestic violence (and not any criminal behavior) is the first of many indications the NFL has a huge problem. Then, when the inside-the-elevator video became public, the NFL found their excuse for reversing their previously lenient handling of Ray Rice. In doing so, their chose to ignore their "new" domestic violence policy and went straight to a indefinite ban.
Stumbling and reactive.
When Adrian Peterson was indicted for child abuse for beating his son with a stick, the Minnesota Vikings deactivated him for the next game, in which they were soundly beaten by the New England Patriots They had no obligation to suspend him; he had been indicted and the civil proceedings of his trial would drag on for another year. He had not been found guilty of anything. So, they promptly reinstated him. Then came the flurry of public backlash, and the Vikings reversed course. Again. (Note: as pointed out by Keith Olberman, the Vikings suspended QB Chris Cook in 2011 for the entire duration of his criminal trial for domestic violence, then welcomed him back when he was found innocent)
Stumbling and reactive.
When Jameis Winston stood up on a table in a campus cafeteria and shouted "f**k her in the p***y", Florida State suspended him for one half of their next game, a very high profile Prime time match with Clemson and ESPN Game Day on campus. Then came the flurry of public backlash. Sure, here is a teenager repeating an internet meme he found to be hilarious and empowering. What's wrong with that? When you have been accused of rape, the image of a man shouting about intercourse which he finds funny is really not the image you want to portray. Combined with his citation for shoplifting crab legs in the Spring and you have to conclude that Winston is a boy with a very poor sense of moral behavior. Certainly not the kind of person I would want to be an employee (of course, the NFL may be willing to overlook that). On Friday, the night before the game, the school extended his suspension for the entire game. Their excuse was that "further investigation" revealed more about the incident. Yeah, whatever. They bowed to public pressure and did the right thing.
Stumbling and reactive.
The NFL and College football would do themselves a favor by becoming a bit more proactive in these matters. Rather than subjectively deciding on discipline in reaction to public opinion, they need to write specific policies and stick to them. Not employing criminals would be an excellent place to start.
Is the NFL beholden to public opinion? No!
Is the NFL beholden to the free market? You bet your sweet ass it is!
Would I get fired for doing what Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, or Jameis Winston did? Yes! I am a physician and my hospital and university take a dim view of criminal behavior. I would be protected temporarily by due process but I wouldn't be permitted to treat patients during that time. I concede that not all professions have such standards (note that I left out the word "high" before the word "standards"). Should the NFL (or any professional sports franchise) adopt this level of expectations? That's a decision that easily made by the free market. If the viewing public continue to buy merchandise and tickets, if the TV networks continue to shell out franchising fees, and if advertisers continue to buy airtime, then yes, the NFL is welcome to employ as many criminals as it does. But when advertisers like InBev (Anheuser-Busch) and Marriott begin to reconsider their financial commitment to the league, the NFL realizes it's time to change.
As for Jameis Winston, he has an uphill climb ahead of him if he wants to win another Heisman Trophy. To do so, his performance on the field must be significantly better than anyone else and the voters will have to conveniently forget the criteria for the trophy:
"The outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work"
I don't think that possibly committing sexual assault, stealing crab legs, and shouting profanity in a cafeteria demonstrate the pursuit of excellence with integrity.
Fight on,
Hans
PS: And now some good news. The cadets at Texas A&M have the honored duty of caring for Reveille, the school's beloved mascot (who is also considered to be the highest ranking member of the corps) Sometimes, this duty goes a little beyond combing her hair and taking her for walks. In last Saturday's game versus SMU, Ryan Krieder, Reveille's handler, put his body on the line and deflected an incoming SMU player, protecting her. He has been hailed as a hero and will be gifted a pair of boots by the corps' commandant.
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