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I really don't have an opinion on the whole thing that's gone on with the NFL, but I've been thinking about a couple things....
- VISIBILITY
If Ray Rice worked for the Baltimore Municipal Waste Authority, this would have been a local news item and never hit the national news wire.
If Ray Rice was a practice team or 53rd player on the roster, we'd have probably heard less too.
It's clear that this has been a huuuuuuge part of the entire issue.
And it's also become a lynchpin regarding the issue of crimes and NFL players.
So while this whole discussion has taken place, it's entirely been about punishment rather than a multitude of problems; the NFL's lack of a unified discussion or agreement on processing players who are being subject to the criminal justice system, the lack of transparency in the process, is violence & crime a problem in the NFL, etc.
- STATISTICS
Related to visibility, I'd like to see (I'm sure the NYT had this, but I can't find it) statistics of crime and professional sports.
The thing is, I don't hear about domestic violence or robbery or general crime cases happening on the New York Yankees, much less the San Diego Padres.
In my mind, crime seems to be NFL -> NBA -> NCAA -> MLB.
If it's a problem that's plaguing the league, then they need to be pressured to address it, but I don't think you can go all vigilante either.
The only reason it's slid this badly is the profile level of the players combined with them being public figures.
If the NFL has a crime problem, then it should create a system that creates disincentive to commit the crime.
And it needs to be transparent and all the side dishes we want.
...Just thoughts... I had more when I was in the bathroom, let's see if I get them back.