Carmichael Dave: Goodbye Roger Goodell

Warning: I will be using all-caps in this article. Viewer discretion is advised. 

The NFL is being stupid.

What else is new? The NFL is the athlete that has dominated his sport, gets a ton of endorsements, and makes a few music videos. Maybe releases a rap album. The ego is getting dangerously close to surpassing the talent.

With this Ray Rice thing, I would say it has become comical, but unfortunately there is nothing to laugh about.

So the NFL and Goodell have suspended Ray Rice indefinitely, and the Baltimore Ravens have released Rice from his contract.

Naturally, we as fans are supposed to say "Thank God! Congratulations NFL, you finally got it right. The NFL doesn't stand for this, and they have done their job."

All this because a tape came out showing the actual punch. Got it.

The focus of sports media today is undoubtedly going to be

"Did the NFL and the Ravens see the tape before yesterday? Cause if so, OMG OUTRAGE"

Right.

So let's recap what we knew pre-2nd tape:

Ray Rice knocked his fiancee unconscious in an elevator.

We know this because we saw a 1st tape of him dragging her, not conscious, from the elevator.

We also know it because Ray Rice apologized for it.

We also know it because his now-wife ALSO apologized for "her role" in it.

Yeah.

So what I find myself wondering, now that Tape 2 Electric Boogaloo has reared its ugly head, is this:

WHAT THE HELL DID YOU GUYS THINK HAPPENED? HOW DOES THIS TAPE CHANGE ANYTHING????

DID YOU THINK HE DIDN'T HIT HER ON THE ELEVATOR?

DID YOU THINK THAT MAYBE HE JUST FLICKED HER IN THE EAR, OR HONKED HER NOSE, AND THEN A GIANT BUMBLEBEE STUNG HER, CAUSING HER LOSS OF CONSCIOUSNESS?? WHAT THE HOLY HELL DID YOU THINK HAPPENED AND WHY DOES A TAPE CHANGE ANYTHING??

Let's take a made-up player case. Let's say instead of beating his wife, he beat his child.

We see the child dragged out of an elevator.

The player admits he beat the child.

The child apologizes for his/her role in the beating.

THEN, we see a tape of the player beating the child.

"Oh, OK!! Now I get it. I KNEW he beat the child before, but now that I saw the tape I can clearly see that he SUPER BEAT the child and now that I have moving pictures of it IT ALL MAKES SENSE"

***************

This whirlpool of stupidity is, in a word, STUPID.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh said "Seeing this video changed everything".

REALLY Coach? Why?

Because it made it real-er?

My 6 year old daughter has more common sense than you and the NFL.

The NFL has had 3 commissioners. Pete Rozelle, Paul Tagliabue, and Roger Goodell. One of these kids is doing his own thing.

Its not just this. Its the drug policies, spy gate (in which Tags had to come back and smooth things over), concussions, retired players, etc. Of course it isn't all Goodell's fault, he gets paid to take the onus off the owners. But at some point the owners have to make a move and protect the shield. 

Honestly, the NFL would've sounded smarter by saying "Ray Rice, Ray McDonald, Ray Lewis? All Rays are hereby banned for life."

That's probably more sound logic than "OMG THE TAPE SHOWS IT CHANGES EVERYTHING".

Par for the course, NFL. That's not a good thing.