NFL Emperor ‘Goddell’: Behave or be gone!

Dear Emperor Goddell,

I have cracked your code.  You and your brethren in the shadows can no longer hide.  The veil has dropped and we, the fans, have realized what the NFL truly stands for.

It stands for National Felony League.

If they are found guilty of their alleged activity, they forefit their salary, their contract is voided and they are banned from the NFL.

You thought by focusing the attention of the general public on the likes of Tim Tebow and Robert Griffin III, who put faith first that the sheeple would blindly look the other way when it came to off-field infractions.

Stir the pot to focus on what you wanted to cook up. You would throw out the occassional drunk driving arrest or possession of marijuana incident to keep people off your tracks. But in the end you were toppled by TMZ. I am beginning to think that TMZ stands for True Media Zealots.  It seems that these journalists know how to get to the truth of a story  and boy did they make you look bad.

Ray Rice knocks out his fiance with a punch that would make Manny Pacquiao proud and Adrian Peterson has shown that the Viking approach to child rearing did not die out with the Vikings or Leif Erickson. What was your response? Oh yeah it was to sing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”

As Vince Lombardi would have so eloquently put it, “WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON OUT HERE?!?!?!”

That is a good question.

What is going on out there?

Why the influx of violent incidents off the field  all of the sudden? Some may argue that it just seems like there is an increase in off field activities that end up on the police blotter.  Some may say that the number of police-related incidents within the NFL are just a mirror of society and the ills that plague it.

The emperor needs to take action.

The only difference is that in the NFL, there is a smaller sample of people and any incident garners more media attention due to the fact that these are highly trained athletes. The argument is that the men of the NFL are a cross section of society and that there are always going to be a few bad apples.

But wait, I thought the NFL had processes in place that were to alert the powers that be to possible warning signs that some may have violent tendencies? What happened? Was there a failure to communicate? A failure at all levels to properly address a situation that was lurking in the shadows?

What do you do now?  Increase the punishment after the crimes have been committed (Oh wait, innocent until proven guilty). Change the rules to fit the situations after the fact? I bet the Players Union is going to have a field day with that.

Let me tell you what you need to do.

Plain and simple, if a player acts in a manner that leads to his arrest or charging of a crime (mind you, a criminal act as defined by law), he is automatically suspended with no pay until the judicial process is completed. If they are found guilty of their alleged activity, they forefit their salary, their contract is voided and they are banned from the NFL. If they are found not guilty, they are reinstated with back pay and allowed to resume all football-related activities.

Is it harsh?

Yes!

Is it fair?

Yes, because the NFL is a brand name, the players represent that brand name as well as of the names and actions brought forth by that player tarnish the marketability of the league and other sponsors, the party in question needs to be removed from the equation.

Is life fair?

HELL NO.

But these are men are held to a higher standard than the rest of society.  If you are going to play the game then play it with integrity both on and off the field.  If a player can’t do that then they do not deserve to play.

So what does this have to do with the Packers?

Nothing and everything.

Green Bay needs to make sure that they keep their reputation intact. Have there been incidents?

Yes, Johnny Jolly comes to mind; he faltered, he fell and then he picked himself up and was able to redeem himself.

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Black and Teal

He suffered the consequences of his actions.  Now the rest of the NFL needs to fall into place.  Players, coaches and even owners (yes all of us Packers owners included) need to step up and represent our teams and community.  No longer should we accept behavior that exemplifies a gangster or criminal nature. Actions need to speak louder than the criminal justice system.

Begin to police yourself.

Elder statesmen, teach the rookies what is acceptable and what is not. Bring back pride, honor and take integrity.

Mr. Goddell, if you and your secret society of conspirators can’t step out of the shadows to properly address the actions of your employees, then maybe you need to step down and allow someone who is not afraid to bring down the hammer and the law.

Enough is enough, stop treating these players with kid gloves and let them know that for each of their actions that result in or create a negative perception of the league, there will be a swift reaction to deal with the unacceptable.

Rise above the norm and set the standard for what is expected from all players of all ages. Lead by positive example, or is that too much to ask?