Illustration by Eloni Bickham
On August 17, 2017, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced that the Cowboys’ star running back Ezekiel Elliott would be suspended for the first six games of the upcoming season for allegations of physical confrontations with his former girlfriend Tiffany Thompson. Despite this ruling, Elliot only began serving his suspension last week after playing in the first eight weeks of the season. Indecisive court rulings were initially responsible for the delayed start to his suspension.
Elliott’s ex-girlfriend filed two separate reports to the Columbus Police Department in 2016, both claiming Elliot had been physically abusive. However, witnesses could not confirm or prove that these accusations were true, which is why Elliott was not arrested or charged by the police.
Some may ask how Elliott could be suspended by the NFL without hard proof of crime. The NFL actually holds its players to a higher standard than the law, and it is not sufficient to be found not guilty to escape punishment. The league’s policy states that “persons who fail to live up to this standard of conduct are subject to discipline, even where the conduct itself does not result in conviction of a crime.” The NFL has a history of accusations and arrests regarding domestic violence and sexual assault. After causing physical harm to his son and pleading guilty to reckless assault, Adrian Peterson received a $4000 fine, was assigned to 80 hours of community service, and was suspended for the rest of his season. In the process, he was stripped of his paycheck for those games. Although some cases are handled responsibly, many cases are overlooked or not properly investigated.
The NFL needs to take immediate actions on all of their cases. We cannot keep letting issues like these slide. These problems are far more important than a game of football, and we can’t sacrifice justice for entertainment.
If we turn a blind eye and disregard these incidents, we are dismissing their importance. In the grand scheme of things, football is just a game, and while people love it, human lives and safety mean a whole lot more than who wins on Sunday night.