Despite the political exchanges and varied opinions, Reaganomics was a simple yet effective economic plan to help the United States economy recover in the 1980s. Each step in the plan was carefully connected. Tax breaks for people in higher income brackets, more spending creates more jobs, opportunities for lower and middle class expand. Every part was one "leg of the stool" that affected the other.
Many people are familiar with this trickle-down effect approach. It's a theory that centers on high-to-low changes or downward rippling effects that can be applied to economics and social behavior. But, what about a trickle-up effect? What happens when the seeds are planted at the bottom and allowed to grow relatively unobstructed?
Over the last few years, and especially in recent weeks, the NFL has come under fire for a rash of violent and illegal behavior from several marquee players. Ray Rice was released by the Baltimore Ravens earlier this month following video of a domestic abuse instance between him and his then girlfriend. Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson and Carolina Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy are both on the NFL's exempt list following child and domestic abuse charges. Aaron Hernandez, a former tight end for the New England Patriots, is currently facing separate murder charges stemming from incidents in 2012 and 2013
Commissioner Roger Goodell has been criticized as players across the league have repeatedly found themselves in trouble. But there is little he can say at this point that will have a significant impact going forward. Too many of these players have gotten the notion that they are above social expectations and legal requirements. The sense that the rules do not apply to them has been ingrained in their thinking from an early age and made especially true in college football. Playing in the NFL and getting paid millions of dollars despite past character concerns only reinforces that belief.
"I am a mother, a wife and a passionate football fan," PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi said in a statement. "I am deeply disturbed that the repugnant behavior of a few players and the NFL's acknowledged mishandling of these issues, is casting a cloud over the integrity of the league and the reputations of the majority of players who've dedicated their lives to a career they love."
With big-time sponsors expressing concern and mounting public scrutiny, a paradigm shift throughout upper levels of football may be coming.
Players such as Hernandez and Josh Gordon scared some scouts when coming out of college due to concerns about their character and maturity. Yet, they were still drafted. Yes, their draft stock did take a hit (Hernandez fell to the fourth round while Gordon was selected in the supplemental draft). But, it didn't matter that they weren't being selected when they wanted to, only that they ended up where they wanted, which was in the NFL.
Going forward, college players will need to be more aware of their actions as pro teams will investigate them more thoroughly than ever while holding them up to a stricter moral standard.
"With all that's happened in the area of domestic violence, I think you'll see more teams really investigate what has happened with a player in college, in high school, with a focus on violent incidents," Phil Savage, former general manager of the Cleveland Browns, told The Washington Post.
The most immediate example for this expected change will be Florida State quarterback and reigning Heisman-Trophy winner Jameis Winston. Winston is suspended for the first half of this weekend's game against Clemson after shouting obscene sexual phrases on campus. This most recent suspension is one of many behavioral issues the quarterback has gotten himself into over the last year.
"I think it changes the way he'll be looked at," Vinny Cerrato, a former front office executive with the Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers, said in that same story with The Washington Post. "People aren't going to put up with it. Look at the way social media is now. That's going to be the face of your franchise."
Social media and 24-hour news cycles have thoroughly changed the way big time NCAA football schools and NFL franchises can operate. While most governing bodies are still reactionary - public outcry and an indefinite suspension for Ray Rice only occurred after TMZ released footage of the incident - proactive approaches are being called for to avoid national backlash.
With Twitter, Facebook, blogs and other social online hubs, fans and media now have direct access to vent their frustrations and complaints with schools, teams and individuals. This gives the public a multi-faceted yet unified voice with which to oppose something. Although NCAAF and the NFL should be more concerned with what is morally right, the fear of bad PR igniting change is at least a start.
What football needs is a reverse trickle-down effect. Start at the bottom and work your way up. There needs to be an institutional change in Division I football in which the treatment of star athletes is significantly adjusted. No more should young men who are turned into national celebrities before they can even legally buy a beer be continually rewarded despite questionable behavior. It's time major football programs started valuing integrity on par with talent.
Instead of only doling out perfunctory punishments for athletes who break the rules aimed at quieting the masses, schools and franchises need to offer help and support as well. No, they can't control the decisions made by their players. But they can provide them with the tools to make sound judgment calls and identify potentially damaging situations beforehand. This will set a precedent of higher ethics that will follow athletes throughout their football careers.
"The fan base won't accept it. You just have to look at what's been happening...People aren't going to put up with it," Cerrato said. "The awareness has been heightened. You have to adapt. You can't take those players. You can't have them on your team."
Those who don't respond accordingly to all of the negativity surrounding football right now will have a difficult time maintaining support.
