Michael Vick, O.J. Simpson, and Ray Lewis’, infamous stories of crime made the news, and were obsessed over by Americans. David Greene for National Public Radio’s The Morning Edition explained that despite the role that Lewis played in a double murder case, Lewis’ career in the NFL was unchanged, and Lewis continued to play football for over a decade. Often, there are few consequences for NFL players who commit crimes, or moral infractions, and at times, their actions are rewarded with publicity. People look up to athletes, and children often idolize players, obsessing over creating parallels between their own lives and that of their favorite quarterback, as a multibillion dollar organization, bringing in over nine billion dollars worth of …show more content…
The most common form of consequence for players is fines, which they also receive for a number of small, in-game infractions, such as a fine upwards of six thousand dollars for throwing the football into the stands. The second is suspension, which can occur for something as small as a dirty hit on another player. Because NFL players are often paid per-game, they usually lose a few thousand dollars per week of suspension. But to someone who according to Forbes, makes on average, 1.9 million dollars per year, a fine or suspension is not a large enough consequence for players. In the ninety-seven years since the NFL has been organized, it has taken American society by storm, and the influence that it’s teams and players’ actions have are undeniable. While I support the presumption of innocence, it seems that there are more convictions than consequences. It is particularly disturbing that the men who society idolizes are men who I wouldn’t be comfortable leaving my child alone with due to the poor moral conduct they are constantly reported as having. The NFL should not only monitor its players, but they should revise their current method of due process, and should hold players to a higher level of integrity and excellence, to better their teams, the future, and America as a
Ray Rice a former NFL running back who played for the Baltimore Ravens was caught brutally smacking his fiancee over, leaving her blacked out on the floor of a casino elevator taking place in Atlantic City. The footage leaked out world wide and the public created huge controversy over the coverage that continuously played a numerous of times on major news networks. Rice who was cut from the Ravens and suspended from the NFL after the release of the show down is now an unsigned free agent, searching for hope. Through shocking evidence and a glimpse into a professional football players life, I aim to examine how media created an entertainment brand out of the countless amount of times the video was aired, how the NFL handled the scandal, and how Rice strives to regain his identity.
The NFL position in this article makes them look very greedy and indifferent about the overall health of their football players. One of the ethical perspectives that can be used to analyze the NFL's position in this article is deontology. Deontology is the perspective where rules is the defining factor for ethical decisions. From the deontology perspective it makes it seem that the NFL has decided not to follow the rules and even blurred the lines as to what potential injuries their players can get. They wanted their injured players to play without having to follow through the with proper procedure in verifying that the players are in conditions healthy enough to play. It looks as if the NFL cares only about bringing in money and not care about
Even though athletes get special treatment they never think about how them getting off easy can back fire. The Ray Rice case is a prime example of how it was a downfall in their career. Rice got released from the Baltimore ravens and since then he has not play football. The NFL suspended him indefinitely, but it was later lifted because he did not lie to the commissioner about the domestic violence case. He was free to play again, but no team signed him because it was going to come with a ton of backlash and no team wanted to deal with that because it would have been a distraction to the team. Also, many people lost respect for Rice for putting his hands on a women. No one would look at him the same anymore. He has yet to sign with any team since the incident took
An argument can be based on whether or not the NFL should be held liable when players know what a violent sport they participate in. The NFL is 10 Billion dollar a year business and the majority of their income are made through the exploitation of their players (Grove, J 760). The argument can be made that players should seek compensation for injuries because salaries for injured players are not guaranteed beyond the season in which the injury is sustained (Grove, J 760). It has been posed as whether or not the government should step in to help regulate owed compensation. One way the state or federal government can intervene and impose legislative act...
Above in my thesis statement are the men I would like to highlight for you. According to USA Today, (Mihoces, 2013) Jovan Belcher loved to play sports especially wrestling and football. He was drafted in 2009 with the Kansas City Chiefs and defied the odds by being a great defensive player. On December 1, 2012 he killed his girlfriend and himself (Mihoces, 2013). His mother is currently suing the Kansas City Chiefs for a wrongful death suite to the many concussions that he received while on the football team (Skretta, 2014) Ray Esterling played for the Atlanta Falcons for many years and retired at the age of 35. At the age of 62, he committed suicide, and an autopsy was completed and CTE was found inside his brain (Tierney, 2012) His family has also opened a case against the NFL for a wrongful death suite as well. Last but not least there was O.J. Murdock. He loved sports as well. He was a superstar player in his high school and later in college he continued playing the game. However, O.J Murdock never played NFL. He took his life while sitting in the parking lot of Middleton High School (ESPN New York Associate Press, 2012). Each player was believed to have CTE and committed ...
Do you think media coverage of the National Football League is fair? The media has been interfering with players personal life and it is not ok. Such as the incident with Johnny Manziel, Jerry Rice, and Adrian Peterson. Johnny Manziel committed domestic violence against his girl friend, Jerry Rice punched his girlfriend, and Adrian Peterson committed child abuse. In addition to those crimes there have been many more. These issues have all dealt with law breaking, and media tells the public. This is interfering with player careers, it’s putting pressure on the NFL, and also affecting many youth football leagues. The media coverage of the NFL’s problems is not fair because the NFL has bigger problems to worry about, players are leaving teams, and parents are not letting there kids play football.
...s and driving while intoxicated. They have this sense of entitlement because they play the in highest level of sports. Since they are NFL players, they think people should look up to them. They need to realize that they are essentially employees of a Fortune 500 company. This is why the rookie symposium is very crucial in the development of an NFL player. Former NFL players as well as the players in charge of the Substance Abuse Policy discipline can teach and inform the rookies of the troubles that former players have gotten into. In addition, rookies can be taught about the problems that stem from alcohol and drug abuse. Whatever method they choose (whether its showing charts or graphics of former players getting arrested), the rookies should understand that the NFL is there to help and that staying out of trouble is in the best interest of both parties.
In the last three years alone the list of the accused included Dante Bichette, Barry Bonds, John Daly, Scottie Pippen, Jose Conseco, Bobby Cox, Mike Tyson, Warren Moon, Michael Cooper, Darryl Strawberry, Duane Causwell, Olden Polynice, Robert Parish, and OJ Simpson( Callahan, Sports Ilustrated). And these are only the pro athletes whose wives had the courage to report the violence.
If there’s one thing we dread in the summer more than the heat, it’s the afflicting sentiment that surrounds oneself when one is inhibited from experiencing the thrills of football for six long and gruesome months. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football is a part of many Americans’ Saturdays, but to fewer does it mean their lives. Recently coming under debate, many sporting fans and college athletes believe that players should be paid more than just tuition, room, board, and books. Two articles on this issue that bring up valid points worth discussing are Paul Marx’ “Athlete’s New Day” and Warren Hartenstine’s “College Athletes Should Not Be Paid.” From these articles I have found on the basis of logical,
The number of players abusing drugs in the NFL is increasing every year (www.cbs.sportsline.com). This is concerning because it seems like more and more players each year get caught either using drugs, or being involved in some kind of drug activity. The only drug being used that is on the decline is anabolic steroids. This decline is due to several players in the 1970's and 80's dying before they could see their kids make it to high school. The first player to publicly come clean about being addicted to drugs was Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson. He was a Dallas Cowboys linebacker who played in three Super Bowls. He told the world about his addiction in 1981. He claims that a player using cocaine and marijuana was very uncommon at his rookie season. The more he played, the more drugs he began to take. He claims that since he came clean, the problems have been getting worse. More and more players keep doing drugs even after they hear of players having drug problems. If these...
The failure of the NFL to disclose credible research linking concussions to permanent, hidden long-term brain injury to the players can be interpreted as both ethical and unethical. Ethical theories and traps influenced the NFL’s decision. Not disclosing the research is considered moral by the ethical theory of utilitarianism. Utilitarian ethics considers the best decision is one which maximizes overall happiness and minimizes overall pain is more ethical. Utilitarianism’s goal is to produce the best outcome for the largest number of people. The NFL’s failure to reveal the research connecting concussion to permanent brain injury’s is in line with utilitarian ethics. A larger population benefits from football compared to the small number of
In recent years the idea of student-athletes getting paid for playing in college has become more and more popular. There have been many instances where questions have been raised surrounding some of the finest athletes participating in the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Some of the biggest names in athletics have been involved, including Cam Newton, Reggie Bush, Johnny Manziel, along with many more athletes who have been exposed by the media for supposedly accepting cash benefits while in college. Most recently Johnny Manziel has been brought up in an autograph scandal. Apparently he was paid ten-thousand dollars for more than over one thousand and one hundred autographs. Ultimately Manziel was only suspended one half of a full collegiate football game, but is it really fair that he was forced to sit a half of football game because he simply gave some people his John Hancock? Reggie Bush and Cam Newton have both been involved in scandals involving mone...
Many memories are made in football, but sadly some of the greatest players cannot recall them. The National Football League has been associated with concussions and brain traumas throughout the years, but lately it has been exposed by media and NFL veterans. The league recently “reached a $765 million preliminary settlement with thousands of former players who were suing the league over its treatment of concussions…” (Waldron). Many former players are experiencing the effects of taking hard hits over and over again; they were not properly treated, which makes the injury worse and long term. The concussion issue in the NFL is more prevalent today, because it affects not only the players, but the league as a whole.
...i-gay remark on Twitter but was not punished by the NFL. Rashard Mendenhall of the Pittsburgh Steelers was condemned for his comments posted about Osama bin Laden and supporting Adrian Peterson’s comparison of the NFL with the slave trade. Professional athletes that care about their success and image need to recognize the sensitivity of the subject matters that they talk about. Whether these professionals like it or not, they are in the public eye and are considered role models by fans, parents, and children.
The world of professional sports is one full of controversy yet it is held to great praise. Sports become holiday traditions, a land of dreams, a bible of inspiration, and even a way of life. The praise for sports is highlighted in those main areas, but the controversy begins with professional athletes and their salaries. There seems to always be some sort of headline that involves an athlete receiving a new contract worth a mammoth amount of money. When the public hears about such a contract many can’t help but express their discontent for what they believe to be a ludicrous amount of money rewarded to an athlete for “simply playing a game”. It is important to keep in mind the athlete’s performance, sales impact, team worth, and many other