Many Americans look forward to watching football on Sunday afternoons, relishing the chance to cheer for their favorite teams. While the NFL is in the business of providing sports entertainment for viewers, they also carry responsibility to handle difficult situations with their players.   

The recent reports of domestic violence regarding athletes like Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson left sports fans with mixed emotions. While some fans renounced their love for certain players, others held to the belief that players should not face condemnation for their behavior in their private lives.

FACING THE CONSEQUENCES

The New York Times recently released an article discussing the light punishments the NFL imposes on players who are involved in domestic violence cases.  The article mentioned that football players often face harsher punishments for substance abuse or drunken driving than for domestic abuse cases. In fact, the NFL commissioner Roger Goodell admitted that he failed to properly enforce the NFL personal conduct policy over the last seven years in this specific area, according to the New York Times. The article mentioned that in the past, football players received two to four game suspensions for marijuana possession while other players only received a one game suspension for domestic violence.

Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson were punished for their actions and received life suspensions from the NFL, but other players have been convicted for domestic abuse as recent as this week. Dallas Cowboys special teams player C.J. Spillman is currently under investigation for domestic violence charges.

RESPONSE OF BIOLA STUDENTS

On Biola’s campus, students believe that the NFL should hold its players to a higher standard.

“You get the sense that this has been going on through the league for a long time and only recently the NFL has had to change its stance,” said senior political science major and Vikings fan Jason Siders.

Siders feels extremely disappointed that the star player of the Vikings has committed domestic abuse. In his mind, it is a huge hit to the team’s image and franchise. “It’s really hard to see such a high fall,” Siders said.

Briana Williams, a senior business marketing management major, believes that athletes are counted as celebrities and must be held to a higher standard since many people in society view them as role models.

“They need to be extra careful about their actions,” Williams said. “They’re representing the NFL, their team, the city they play for, their former university, and themselves.”

When asked if the NFL has responsibility to govern players’ actions, Williams responded that she finds the NFL accountable for this issue if they allow players to continue in the sport while facing convictions of domestic violence.

Junior sociology major Mark Stacy explained that the public should hold public figures accountable, and they should not receive special treatment.

”The NFL should at least release a statement condemning [domestic violence],” Stacy said. He believes the NFL should not condone this sort of abuse among its players and must take some sort of action.

Stacy said he would not be able to view a player with such appreciation or respect after the player committed domestic violence.

These cases of domestic abuse in the NFL have started a conversation about this serious issue that will hopefully no longer be ignored.