Zackery Everhart Everhart 1 Professor Kent Quaney English 99 22 October 2014
As everyone who has access to a television or the Internet knows, a lot of the major headlines today are dealing with the domestic violence problem in the National Football League. In the article written by Thomas Barrabi in the International Business Times, “NFL’s History of Domestic Violence Extends Beyond Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson Abuse Cases”, it addresses the discrepancies the NFL has displayed throughout the years when it comes to disciplining the players involved in domestic violence disputes. This article takes a look at the NFL’s position on the crime of domestic violence throughout the years and today and also what they have done
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Although the NFL is trying to change their involvement on domestic violence issues, it is unclear at this time if they will follow through. The NFL and Goodell continue to be under media scrutiny, especially since swift and proper action against Rice did not happen until after the footage was released. They have changed their policy to a six game suspension for a first offense, although offense is not defined and is open for interpretation in the policy. There are still football players who continue to play despite legal action against them in domestic violence disputes. The article continues with pointing out the fact that the NFL cannot altogether end the problem of domestic violence in the world today, but it can use the recent media attention to bring awareness to the problem. Although the ways in which the NFL handled these cases previously are questionable at best, there is potential to recover from previous mistakes by continuing to hold their athletes accountable and providing awareness on the subject. Overall, this article did an extremely good job of pointing out the discrepancies of how the NFL has handled domestic violence cases throughout the years. It was organized well in
In the article”NFL Apologize to Women for Ray Rice” Roxanne Jones who was the former Vice President of the NFL and national lecturer on sports , is trying to convince others that the domestic violence act Ray Rice committed against his former fiancé Janay Palmer was a more severe act than he was held accountable for. She is addressing an argument to Roger Goodell , the NFL commissioner ,that Rices’ suspension from playing football should have been longer than just two games. Jones believes the suspension what unjustified because Rice was seen on camera dragging Palmer who was unconscious at the time out of a casino elevator. Jones compares this domestic violence act to an animal abuse crime, which occurred
“I am here to start a fight, because I’m a man and that’s how I solve problems” (Phillips). The main argument presented in Brian Phillips’s essay “Man Up” is what ‘being a man’ means in football culture. Being a man is being tough, standing up for yourself, and not being afraid to fight back physically. In the NFL, football is a man’s sport where emotional/mental issues are a sign of weakness. Throughout his essay, Phillips criticizes the culture of the NFL (National Football League) by describing the scandal that took place between two football players: Richie Incognito and Jonathan Martin.
Phillips has been a fan of the NFL for many years. Being a fan of the NFL has allowed Phillips to better understand the game and what goes on between the players. Phillips reads the tweets and watches the games, so he is well informed about anything that happens in the NFL, both on and off the field. In his essay, Phillips writes about the bullying scandal that happened to Jonathan Martin. Martin was bullied online by Richie Incognito for leaving the team to deal with emotional issues. Phillips tell us what he thinks about the scandal and what he thinks about football through his years of
The NFL generates crazy amount of revenue by marketing the violence. Many people buy into the “King sized” hits propaganda and think nothing of the actual physical damage. The documentary “A League of Denial” reveals how detrimental masculinity can when placed upon a nation stage such as the NFL. Mike Webster, an offensive lineman for the Pittsburgh Steelers is considered patient zero, his brain started the investigation which prompted this two hour special on PBS’ “Frontline” series. He was diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) and was dead by 50.
Multiple deaths from a degenerative brain disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is what the true culprit of the NFL is. This disease is caused from repetitive blunt force trauma to the head, leading those who are effected to struggle later in life and even turn to suicide. People are writing about these safety concerns in football nowadays because of the multitude of deaths related to this disease and the way the NFL choses to deal with it. The NFL disregarding its players is a subject at hand currently because people continue to suffer from CTE without even confirming they have it before they have already deteriorated. “Football Has Become Too Real to Watch” by television writer, Eric Buchman, describes these realities of the NFL and how it went from being a safe haven to a place where the NFL pretends to be oblivious to the realities of the game. Buchman’s argument is that the joy of football is gone due to the reality of current issues within the NFL. The NFL getting away with awful things is what Buchman wants the reader to take away from this article. His contribution to this debate is that he offers a perspective of the fans for why this issue is important without any biases towards the NFL.
After pleading guilty to verbal harassment, Smith attended group therapy and paid the NFL a $25,000 fine (Schrotenboer, Monteagudo). In the 2013 NFL off-season alone, there were at least thirty-seven arrests or criminal charges filed against NFL players including ten incidents of drunk driving. According to Denver Broncos cornerback Quentin Jammer, “"I don't think anything has changed (with players). I guess guys are going to do what they're going to do regardless.” (Schrotenboer “NFL Arrests Persist After Turbulent Offseason”). The staggering number of incidents in the past 13 years is further proof something needs to be done to prevent criminal activity among NFL players.
The spectator of this sport has an obligation to the players of the sport, to make sure that the organization is protecting and looking out for them. Yet not only should the viewer be held accountable for the lack of communication in consequences between the player and the pro scene, but the organization of the NFL needs to make sure that their players have a full understanding of what is going on and how they need to protect the players. The current situation that is understood, contents contain implied knowledge that all parties of this table are in uniform knowledge and agreement to what comes of playing football. Finally, this should also happen at the youth level when kids are just getting into the sport, as it would better inform the parents and the kid if they understood the full
The findings of this study where based upon interviews that were recorded. In this study, there were multiple reoccurring themes throughout the interviews. The results of the study is that people believe the National Football League doesn’t put their best effort forward when dealing with player safety specifically relating to concussions. A reoccurring theme throughout all five interviews was the belief that the National Football League only cares about making money. Continuing on that note, the research also showed a correlation on how the NFL is not going to make changes unless the players push for change to happen. An example of this is from the interview with Roger Frazier where he stated, “the NFL is not going to take any initiative
The players and teams receive too much leeway when they are involved with crimes or misconducts. They have a “distorted view of themselves” (White) which induces them to “overvalue their abilities and are proud and condescending when relating to others” (White). The league is responsible for investigating and taking action against the players and teams that do not follow the NFL Personal Conduct Policy which the league describes as avoiding “conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the National Football League” (ESPN). This is required to be accepted by all workers in the NFL: players, general managers, coaches, owners, sideline/team employees, and even game officials. Roger Goodell, because of his title and job description, is delegated to be the “the judge and the jury in individual cases” (Pease). This responsibility he has is not a wise way of handling cases because there needs to be some sort of committee involved in order to give a thorough, well balanced, opinion and
Most people understand that football is a violent sport, and one must be very tough in order to compete. Injuries NFL athletes suffer can affect, not only the player, but also the fans and family members watching. Over time, many have become increasingly disturbed by the violence that routinely occurs in
As we constantly hear of professional athletes being involved in domestic violence and other violent crimes, it is important to notice a trend. There is always some athlete being accused of some form of domestic violence. True sociological issues need to be addressed when violent issues such as the O.J. Simpson case arises. Simpson was influenced by a variety of sociological factors that created him into a violent person, such as the way in which African Americans are portrayed by the media, racial socioeconomic disparities, and racial labeling, that are all still evident in our society today.
Regarding the Dewan Smith-Williams case they’re goal to me is to protect the brand and not to protect the husband from himself and his high risk behavior to his wife and family because they didn’t want her to go to the police and keep it silent. I think Mrs. Williams made the right call to come forth and let it be known that spouses and/or partners are being treated unfair and something needs to be done. In my opinion, maybe if fans, anti-violence groups and women’s rights organizations get together and organize a plan that could force the owners to enact stronger and lasting reforms to improve the NFL actions and response to domestic abuse. They should make some amendments to the personal conduct policy. This topic relates to the discussion on human behavior because we want to know what causes the domestic abuse from the spouse especially if the abuser is in the NFL, a super star, and fame is growing and so forth. Find out what area of treatment and theory practice could be used to help the
Professional sports have been in the news for domestic violence for a really long time. Some that may come to your mind could be Ray Rice, Warren Moon, Greg Hardy, and Jose Reyes. Yes, three of these four players are in the National Football League (NFL), but that does not mean that only football players are the ones who have been doing this. The most recent one is Jose Reyes who plays in Major League Baseball (MLB). That is really ones opinion, but some don’t have anything but I slap on the wrist. Commissioners around these leagues usually suspend the player for a couple games until all of the details and videos come out. Ray Rice was suspended two games until they saw evidence then he was suspended for the whole year. Some wanted him banned
Football purists’ have argued against the NFL to not change the flow of the game, as they want football to be kept at its most original form. However, with the advancement of technology and a better understanding of post-football life for players, the league now realizes they must change aspects of the game to be safer and keep their players healthy for their careers and beyond. Player safety is a big concern for the league because the league wants to protect their players, their “employees”. For example, in 2010 the league proposed to hand out hefty fines and even suspension for illegal hits to the head. Only a few years earlier the term illegal hit to the head was unheard, today it is part of football vernacular. Long time football fans may
Sexual assault, abuse, and rape by athletes is a devastating crime. These crimes by themselves are horrendous, but when committed by athletes there are many different factors involved. Through extensive research this paper will show contributing factors that may result in assault, abuse, or rape by athletes. Special treatment for athletes throughout their career, belief in sexual male dominance, and the role of alcohol are all important factors. Other crucial factors are the attitudes and responses of: society, juries, victims, coaches, and athletes. This paper will explore all these issues and show that changes need to be made in all the areas to combat the growing percentages of sport assault, abuse, and rape against women.