Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Player Behavior Confusion


Today Cowboys defensive back Orlando Scandrick was suspended for four games for violation of the league's drug policy.  The drug in question appears to be MDMA.

It wasn't too long ago that Ray Rice beat his fiancee unconscious.

In San Francisco, Aldon Smith has been nailed on not one, but two DUIs.  He also has a little issue with weapons charges and oh yeah, he made a bomb threat at an airport.

While none of these guys deserve a pass it appears increasingly clear that while the NFL will "discipline" all of them, the league is endorsing this behavior with the way their owners
operate.

In Dallas, photos were recently released showing Jerry Jones in a situation right out of Bill Clinton's playbook with two local stripper.  Jerry Jones has repeatedly demonstrated that money can not buy class and right now he looks like a rube from Arkansas who came into money.

Jones, who has his own drinking problem, is all too ready to bring back Josh Brent -  a player who killed a team mate because he couldn't handle his alcohol issues.  How can Mr. Jones expect Josh Brent to handle gap assignments when he can not seem to handle basic life assignments?

Of course when we come to alcohol and the NFL, it is hard to look past Jim Irsay.  Irsay was busted for DUI.  He was found with multiple prescription pain killers and $30,000 in cash in his car despite his alleged girlfriend dying of an overdose just two weeks prior.  I am not a police officer, but in my world this amounts to what you might call a clue.

Where is Commissioner Goodell on all this?  I have yet to hear public comments saying this behavior is inappropriate.  Worse, his own Vice President of Officiating, Dean Blandino, was seen recently on the Cowboys Party Bus headed to Bootsy Bellows nightclub.  Needless to say, other NFL and team executives were less than impressed and called the decision a "total lack of judgement."

The point is the NFL will throw the book at players for a sneeze in the wrong direction or say a player dunking a ball over a goal post, but they don't seem to have the heart to deal with their owners and executives who can't seem to keep it together.

The NFL seems confused by why they have a player behavior problem.  I'm not confused at all.



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