The National Football League is one of the most influential industries in the world. Its brands, players, and games bring in billions upon billions of dollars every year, and its players are compensated accordingly. Football is a game that often brings families together and unites us in our rivalries. Sundays are the highlight of our weekends, and the anticipation of game day is truly what gets some of us through the work week.
The players’ impact is global, yet their behavior sometimes leaves much to be desired. Players from the NFL have made headlines on more than a few occasions due to altercations with the law—particularly for crimes against women. All of this begs the question: if the NFL is so obviously an influential part of our culture, why have they not yet tightened their regulations pertaining to domestic violence and crimes against women? Truthfully, their rules need more than tightening. The only way to regulate domestic violence, and to be an example to the millions of watchful eyes bowing down to their sanctity is give their personal conduct policy a serious face lift, but the NFL has yet to come aboard that ship.
It’s hard to forget the image of former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice punching his fiancee in the face, and dragging her unconscious body out of that hotel elevator in 2014. It’s also difficult to stomach the pictures of Dallas Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy’s ex-girlfriend’s badly bruised body after their physical altercation the very same year. Though these two are the most recent and talked about incidents, they’re hardly the only ones.
It’s only fair to mention that the fame of many players in the NFL inevitably shines a spotlight on their actions. Due to the media’s coverage of their lives, much of what they say or do is scrutinized more than the actions of an everyday person would be. For the most part, they’re fairly well-behaved and law-abiding citizens. In fact, many of them are heavily involved in giving back to fans, charities, and communities in need. However, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t a few bad apples in the league.
Fivethirtyeight.com conducted a study using USA Today’s NFL arrests database, which revealed over 800 arrest records for players in the NFL. The study dates back to the year 2000. According to these records, domestic violence accounts for more than 48 percent of all crimes committed by players in the NFL.
48 percent—that is apparently an acceptable number for the NFL leadership. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has taken heat since the video of Ray Rice surfaced, but that’s hardly led to any monumental changes to their policies, though Goodell would tell you otherwise. “We have changed, strengthened, and toughened the personal conduct policy,”Goodell has said in interviews. What changes you say? Goodell has an answer for that too, “We’re providing resources to help prevent these incidents from occurring. When they do occur they have to be dealt with firmly, consistently, and quickly.”
Goodell would make a great politician. His words are what the public wants to hear, yet his actions fall quite short. The personal conduct policy is a joke. It states that players will be placed on paid leave if the league becomes aware of a violation of the policy. They will be subject to investigations by both the law enforcement and an independent investigation by the NFL, and will face a baseline six game suspension, fine, and community service (or a combination of the three) if they are found guilty of violent or sexual crimes. A second offense will result in banishment from the NFL. Roger Goodell will have the final ruling on all appeals.
Basically, the NFL has a two-strike policy regarding sexual assault and domestic violence. What’s an improvement to the NFL is a metaphorical slap in the face to women. How does that saying go? “Hit me once, it’s really not that big of a deal. Hit me twice, OH NO YOU DIDN’T!” No, that’s not it, is it?
As humans, we are bound to fall short on occasion. We’re a flawed species and mistakes happen, but the watchful eyes that idolize the NFL’s biggest stars are taking notes on their behavior. By allowing their players to act with such misconduct, they’re telling the public that this sort of behavior is okay–as long as it only happens once.
As someone that watches football religiously, and as a woman, I’ve got to say that two strikes is too many. How many more people have to suffer at the hands of overprivileged punks before the NFL has had enough? How many more women will serve as punching bags before the NFL initiates a zero tolerance policy? It’s their job to lead by example, and thus far they’ve let everyone watching down.
I love football. I love the big hits, the hail Mary’s, the winning drives that happen in the final seconds of the 4th quarter, and I’m even somewhat amused by the trash talk. But if I wanted to watch men degrade women both physically and verbally I’d watch The Real World instead.
