Pat_Nasty
Third String But Playing on Special Teams
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2006
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The NFL's year-long suspension of Pacman Jones was a public relations move, clear and simple. Whether we agree with it on an moral/ethical basis or not, we all must admit that the NFL's main objective was to send a message to the fans that the league is doing what it can to curb what fans perceive as a growing amount of delinquency among the players. For the most part, it seems as though NFL fans + pundits alike support Goodell's tough stance, and the league has managed to admirably duck what could have been an ugly black eye.
Nevertheless, the hefty suspension for Jones sets a precedent, and one that I believe is already starting to cause problems for the NFL by binding their hands in how they handle situations down the road, and ultimately bringing more attention to every time a player gets in trouble.
Already, there have been a few minor rumblings about whether the NFL will treat such felons as Jared Allen, a 3-time DUI offender, and Joey Porter, whom the cops have on video committing practically unprovoked assault. Setting a precedent that someone like Pacman, whom the US judicial system hasn't deemed guilty of anything yet, will be suspended for a year, could force the league to mete out equally severe punishments to players like Allen and Porter.
And these guys will be only the tip of the ice berg: there will be instances of domestic assault, nightlife skirmishes, DUIs, weapons violations, and for the conceivable future, each of them will get more attention than before, because it's bigger news for ESPN when the offender in question could end up missing anywhere from 4, 8 to 16 games. Every incident will be scrutinized in terms of how the league handles it, and whether it's penalty is in line with those handed down to Henry and Jones.
Ultimately, wishing to appear strong on the issue could backfire the way the NFL's marijuana policy clearly has. Players are smoking dope with no less frequency than they were before, only now, every time someone's caught, it's a big story because they could end up missing games. Ultimately, fans end up hearing more about rampant put use, masking agents, whizinators and other ways to cheat the testing system than they would if the NFL never started testing for marijuana in the first place.
Roger Goodell might be a little high himself if he thinks the new behavior policy is truly going to turn curb off-field incidents with the law -- is responding to what could be a coincidental rise in the number of run-ins with the law this past season worth putting them front and center every time they occur?
Nevertheless, the hefty suspension for Jones sets a precedent, and one that I believe is already starting to cause problems for the NFL by binding their hands in how they handle situations down the road, and ultimately bringing more attention to every time a player gets in trouble.
Already, there have been a few minor rumblings about whether the NFL will treat such felons as Jared Allen, a 3-time DUI offender, and Joey Porter, whom the cops have on video committing practically unprovoked assault. Setting a precedent that someone like Pacman, whom the US judicial system hasn't deemed guilty of anything yet, will be suspended for a year, could force the league to mete out equally severe punishments to players like Allen and Porter.
And these guys will be only the tip of the ice berg: there will be instances of domestic assault, nightlife skirmishes, DUIs, weapons violations, and for the conceivable future, each of them will get more attention than before, because it's bigger news for ESPN when the offender in question could end up missing anywhere from 4, 8 to 16 games. Every incident will be scrutinized in terms of how the league handles it, and whether it's penalty is in line with those handed down to Henry and Jones.
Ultimately, wishing to appear strong on the issue could backfire the way the NFL's marijuana policy clearly has. Players are smoking dope with no less frequency than they were before, only now, every time someone's caught, it's a big story because they could end up missing games. Ultimately, fans end up hearing more about rampant put use, masking agents, whizinators and other ways to cheat the testing system than they would if the NFL never started testing for marijuana in the first place.
Roger Goodell might be a little high himself if he thinks the new behavior policy is truly going to turn curb off-field incidents with the law -- is responding to what could be a coincidental rise in the number of run-ins with the law this past season worth putting them front and center every time they occur?