Allen Bridge, ‘Doah Staff Writer
October 1, 2014

’DOAH PHOTO COURTESY OF NYPOST.COM

The NFL is the biggest industry in professional sports in America and is often the leader for all other professional sports to look up to and try to imitate. However, the NFL has been under fire recently with many of their high-profile players being charged with domestic or child abuse.

Those names include Ray Rice, Greg Hardy, Adrian Peterson, Jonathan Dwyer and Ray McDonald among others.

Rice was charged with domestic abuse after punching his then fiancée in an elevator during an altercation and knocking her unconscious.

Rice was initially suspended two games by commissioner Roger Goodell before video of the incident was released to the public, resulting in Rice being cut from the Baltimore Ravens, losing his sponsorship with Nike, being pulled from EA Sports Madden video game and suspended indefinitely from the NFL while his case is being resolved.

Hardy was charged with assaulting, threatening his ex-girlfriend and was arrested for 60-days as a result.

Hardy is now on the exempt list for the Carolina Panthers, meaning he will not play but will still be paid.

Adrian Peterson is charged with child abuse/negligence for beating his four-year old son with a switch, leaving multiple scars on his son. Peterson is awaiting trial and is on the exempt list.

Minnesota had planned on playing Peterson, had Radisson Hotels not pulled their sponsorship during the allegations.

Ray McDonald is still playing despite being charged with a felony charge of domestic violence. He has yet to receive a punishment from the NFL and the 49ers are facing major scrutiny for still allowing him to play during this time.

Finally, Dwyer was charged with punching his wife in the face, breaking her nose, and striking his kid in the stomach. Dwyer has since been deactivated and placed on the exempt list for the Cardinals while still receiving pay.

Domestic abuse has no doubt tainted the crest of the NFL.

Commissioner Roger Goodell is under fire for his handling, or lack there of, of these cases.

The NFL is being scrutinized for failing to recognize the severity of domestic abuse and instead focusing on dealing with players and drug issues.

This scrutiny has led leagues like the National Basketball Association (NBA) to reevaluate their current punishment systems and how they would go about handling cases with their players that involve domestic abuse.

The NFL needs to evaluate their punishment system and start cracking down on players for domestic abuse, otherwise they will face the possibility of losing fan support, sponsorships, and credibility to their image.