The NFL makes some pretty debatable calls when it comes to sentencing player suspensions. They also enforce rule changes maybe a little too frequently.
Ray Rice gets suspended for two games upon initial hearing of his domestic abuse case against his girlfriend. Then when the video goes viral (because just hearing that Rice beat his girlfriend to a pulp obviously wasn't enough) the suspension changes to: indefinite. Apparently, just hearing that Rice violently beat his girlfriend in an elevator wasn't enough to change NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's mind. That's just one example that makes you raise an eyebrow at Goodell.
Meanwhile Tom Brady gets suspended for four games because he may have been involved with deflating some of the footballs in last year's AFC Championship game.
Then there's Ray Lewis, Ben Roethlisberger, and Michael Vick. These three players are some of the more well known examples of players who have committed something far worse than deflating a ball or smoking a joint. Lewis may have played a part in a murder, Reothlisberger was accused of sexual assault, and Vick profited from a dog-fighting tournament. All three eventually played again. But some players aren't allowed to play for possession of marijuana. Something just doesn't add up. This suspension system feels really odd.
The NFL needs to reevaluate its current suspension policy. These players are getting off too lightly. Beating up your girlfriend shouldn't result in a smaller punishment than doing a drug. And besides steroids, marijuana is probably a drug that diminishes your athletic ability.
Goodell is already scrutinized and criticized for his tendency to change an NFL rule for every upcoming season. Here are a few examples:
No more 5 yard face mask penalties, only 15 yard ones.
The kickoff is from the 40, not the 35 yard line anymore, as a way to limit the number of concussions. That's his solution: Move the ball 5 yards forward, which surprisingly is a significant difference, to decrease the number of concussions that occur on kickoffs. Makes sense. Maybe. Statistics have shown, however, that players still get concussions on kickoffs as well as on offense and defense. So it's a half-ass solution to what some see as a big problem. Retired players have sued the NFL for their abnormal brain function.
No hitting the quarterback in the head and no more head-to-head collision tackles. This has lead to a number of ridiculous calls that treat the quarterback like he's an art exhibit in a museum, or in other words, like he's never to be touched.
Overtime rules. This is a rare example where it seems like most fans are actually okay with the rule change. Now, the team that loses the coin toss in overtime has a chance to still win should the opposing team score first.
And for this year's rule change, the extra point has been moved back so the range is equivalent to a 33 yard field goal. This is another controversial call.
If there's one thing most football fans can agree on, it's that they favor little to no rule intervention. Fans as a whole like the way the game has been set up for years. But Goodell's tenure as NFL commissioner has so far been marred by puzzling decisions that make the NFL look as questionable as Donald Trump's candidacy.
Controversial rule changes, insensible suspension calls, and a lack of common sense. It should be no mystery why Goodell has been booed every single time he goes up to announce each team's first round draft pick the past few years. Some might argue that the NFL is rationalizing domestic abuse, conveying to kids that it's more okay to give a girl a bloody nose than to do drugs. I doubt most parents would find either behavior acceptable.
Please for the sake of my sanity and NFL morality, if there is such a thing, rethink yourself, NFL!
