Braylon Edwards screwed up. After a big win against the New England Patriots, the New York Jets star wide receiver was charged with a DUI. Yes, this is old news; I’m not breaking anything exciting here. Braylon Edwards’ mistake is not what I’m speaking out on, but rather the events that shortly followed his trouble with the law.
To illustrate my point we need to backtrack to the offseason. Ben Roethlisberger was charged with sexual assault of a young girl in an Atlanta night club. The charges were eventually dropped, but that didn’t stop Commissioner Roger Goodell from suspending Roethlisberger for the first six games of the Pittsburgh Steelers schedule. The suspension was later reduced to just four weeks after Roethlisberger completed some requirements that Goodell set in place. So in a nutshell, Roethlisberger was suspended for four weeks after NOT being convicted of sexual assault.
Braylon Edwards was very obviously guilty of breaking the law when the breathalyzer showed that Edwards’ BAC was 0.16%, double the New York limit. Goodell took no disciplinary action on Edwards. What is Roger Goodell thinking? How can he suspend Roethlisberger, but not Edwards?
Yes, Roethlisberger had previous problems with the law so he was a multiple offender, but does that really make him more worthy of a suspension than Edwards? This was the first time that Edwards himself had been charged with a DUI, but he had been with teammates when they had been pulled over and charged with a DUI.
Last year, Edwards’ former teammate Dante Stallworth was involved in a car accident that took the life of a human being. Stallworth was under the influence of alcohol. Edwards was in the car with him at the time of the accident.
Goodell stated that Roethlisberger was suspended because he hurt the image of the league by simply being involved in a sexual assault case. How Edwards didn’t hurt the image of the league is beyond me. Maybe Goodell and the NFL are going for an image that condones drunk driving. Of the last 14 NFL players to be charged with a DUI, Edwards was the only that received any disciplinary action at all, and it wasn’t sanctions coming from the NFL, it was from the Jets front office. The Jets suspended him for one quarter. Yes, one quarter.
Roger Goodell needs to get his priorities in order. He made a very strong stance when he chose to suspend Roethlisberger, but has been wishy-washy to say the least when DUI issues arise. The Government found Roethlisberger innocent, while Edwards was guilty, and Stallworth took a life. What do you think hurts the image of the league?
-Jeff Hansen
What do you think Roger Goodell should have done? Let me know!!
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