After catching criticism for over a month, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has implemented a policy that will harshly punish players who are involved in domestic abuse cases. Goodell admitted his two-game suspension for Ray Rice was a mistake.
According to the letter that the commissioner sent out to all of the NFL team owners on Thursday, first-time offenders involved in a domestic violence incident will receive a six-game suspension and second-time offenders will be issued a lifetime ban from the NFL. It's now obvious that Goodell felt the need to provide more clarity regarding the issue, especially after the confusion between Rice's weak suspension for being criminally charged in an aggravated assault case and Josh Gordon's recently upheld yearlong ban because of a failed drug test for marijuana.
Although the policy isn't going to change the ruling handed down to Rice, it shows that Goodell is aware of the colossal mistake he made on July 24. While many were expecting at least a four-game ban for Rice (which many still would have thought wasn't harsh enough), the running back received a two-game suspension after video evidence revealed he allegedly knocked out his then-fiancé, Janay Palmer, in an elevator at the Revel Hotel and Resort in Atlantic City. He was seen dragging her limp body out of the elevator when the doors opened. An unreleased video allegedly showed Rice striking Palmer in the elevator, which provides enough evidence to warrant a suspension in excess of two games.
It's hard to believe there wasn't a policy already in place due to the number of such cases that have previously occurred - 21 of 32 NFL teams at one point in 2012 had a player with a domestic violence or sexual assault charge on his record - but at least it's now clear that players know what punishments they'll face. It's even harder to believe that the NFL couldn't handle the Rice situation properly without causing an uproar amongst its fans, the media and others across the country, but Goodell did the right thing by admitting he was in the wrong, whether he wanted to or not.
"At times, however, and despite our best efforts, we fall short of our goals," Goodell wrote in the letter. "We clearly did so in response to a recent incident of domestic violence. ... My disciplinary decision led the public to question our sincerity, our commitment, and whether we understood the toll that domestic violence inflicts on so many families. I take responsibility both for the decision and for ensuring that our actions in the future properly reflect our values. I didn't get it right."
