The bell tolls for Big Ben
So, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has suspended Ben Roethlisberger for 6 games, possibly reducing that to 4 games for compliance with league-ordered counseling. I, for one, consider this fair and appropriate, even though I would've preferred the unconditional 8-game suspension I've ranted and raved for.
Here was an email I sent to Commissioner Goodell yesterday:
Dear Commissioner Goodell:
I listened to your discussion on this morning’s “Mike & Mike Show”, and especially listened to your insights on Ben Roethlisberger. As a former player who didn’t last long before moving into academia in 1984, I have some very strong opinions on this story, as I’ve tweeted and blogged several times over the past few weeks. While I appreciate and respect your position and reference point, as well as your “Kitchen Cabinet”, these are my thoughts in response to your points, which I hope you will take into consideration and even respond to.
There seems to be a fundamental point lost in the ongoing discussion, especially on radio. There’s too much discussion about race, legal status, and precedent regarding the Player Conduct Policy, and not enough on Mr. Roethlisberger’s pattern of conduct. First, Michael Vick is NOT, and SHOULD NOT, be the reference point for how you determine this penalty. Although both Mr. Vick and Mr. Roethlisberger play quarterback, the similarities stop here. Michael Vick was convicted and served prison time for his crimes, not to mention made an effort to rehabilitate. Roethlisberger hasn't even seen an indictment, stood for a mug shot, or been subjected to any external penalty for his actions.
I have been calling for an unconditional 4 to 8-game suspension, and I'm not backpedaling on this recommendation one iota. Ben Roethlisberger's actions are disgusting, to say the least, and he does need to serve some time as per the NFL's Player Conduct Policy. As a scholar, I have spent many years advocating for gender equity and support of females in the sciences, so this entire episode has not only turned my stomach, but offends me on multiple levels, among them intellectually. In fact, I’ve stated publicly on several occasions this month that if you do issue an 8-game suspension, I will personally come to your Manhattan office and shake your hand. Rest assured, if your office door is open to me, I will honor that offer.
My “ultimate” point is that Mr. Roethlisberger's suspension should not be conditional, it needs to address a disturbing pattern of behavior for a 28-year-old multimillionaire, it needs to send a message to the entire NFL, and applying Michael Vick’s situation is an erroneous analogy.
As I will re-emphasize shortly, I am not coming from the reference point of a white man, or a Jets fan. I would be just as outraged if Mark Sanchez behaved this way, or any other player on any team or of any ethnicity, for that matter. I am simply a middle-aged man, an academic professional who, like you, used to play football and am increasingly disgusted by the ongoing pattern of off-field behavior by each successive generation of players. I agree with you 100 percent that to play in the NFL is a privilege, and like it or not, players, coaches, and all other staff or front-office personnel are role models to fans all over the world, especially kids. These are not Philistines gathered from caves. These are supposedly college-educated men who must coexist in the adult world and everyday society.
In terms of Mr. Roethlisberger’s suspension, the more appropriate analogy is Adam "Pacman" Jones, a prolific troublemaker, apparently never indicted, convicted, or sentenced for any of his repeated offenses, and a well-deserving charter member on your “shit list”.
Michael Vick, Tank Johnson, and Donte Stallworth all served some prison time, and received conditional suspensions of various lengths from you. Whether I completely agree with your decisions is irrelevant. These were your decisions, and they appropriately establish some precedent for your office and NFL players. Some of these suspensions were shortened upon demonstration of rehabilitated actions, but suspensions were still dished out. If any high-profile player will be compared to these three players when you consider any future reinstatement, look at Plaxico Burress, not Ben Roethlisberger. Again, Mr. Burress will be completing an external prison term. Mr. Roethlisberger’s only external challenges will be in civil court, not criminal, and this is unfortunately why the onus falls upon your office.
I agree with you 100 percent that violations of the Player Conduct Policy need to be examined on a case-by-case basis. But this should mean CONTEXT OF MISCONDUCT, and this means independent of player's team or position, contract status, and race.
Ben Roethlisberger needs a suspension that makes unequivocally clear that sexual abuse of women, encouraging underage drinking, and repeated offenses will NOT be tolerated by the NFL. Period, exclamation point. And if any player cannot comprehend the consequences of sexual abuse after your message has been delivered, then these players are sadly too stupid to be part of the NFL, and I’m more than willing to help administer an appropriate assessment to verify their stupidity. I’ve been an educator of post-adolescents too many years and seen too much, whether they be student-athletes or not.
This leads me to a final point that reconnects with past letters I’ve sent your office as well as the Player Development Office. Given the number of players who keep demonstrating a lack of understanding right versus wrong, this suggests a flaw in how the NFL deals with players after their initial indoctrination. A reasonably intelligent and mature adult should get the message on how to conduct oneself after his rookie symposia, but whatever lessons you seek for them to learn aren’t long-lasting. Unless your Office of Player Development wishes to overhaul its entire slate of programs and reconstruct them under the guidance of cognitive scientists, I think it might serve the NFL well to provide annual or semi-annual league-wide video-conferences to every team and every player and organizational member to reinforce the importance of appropriate on-field and off-field conduct. If teachers and other professionals can attend periodic in-service training, so could professional athletes. And you don’t even have to limit yourselves to conduct. You can also hold seminars on injuries and player safety, especially in terms of the spine and brain, a topic very near and dear to me.
Lastly, in all candidness, I don’t know how much longer I will be alive given my progression of neurological decline. Optimistic projections are two years. Realistically, now that I am in the early stages of chronic neurogenic renal failure, my hope is to still be alive and relatively functioning when next year’s rookie symposium and combine takes place. I would love the opportunity to be a guest speaker and provide some perspective to a new group of players before they embark on dreams in the NFL. While I’m not as famous as the people you already employ to make an impression on young athletes, I would like to be a resource and advocate for your ongoing efforts in player safety, player conduct, and continuing education.
Thank you for your time and consideration of my insights.
Views and letter to Commissioner Goodell aside, I have a new insight that I'm still trying to get my head around, and as someone neurologically impaired, thanks for 12 years of playing football during the 1970s and 1980s, I'm surprised this insight didn't occur to me sooner.
Not to brag, but my best friend for the past 30-odd years happens to be a medical doctor (as you get older, this is the BEST best friend to have). His training happens to be in orthopedic surgery and rehabilitative medicine (also handy for ex-football players), and he's SMART (the BEST thing of all). Anyway, yesterday evening, he called just to shoot the breeze for a bit, and we got to talking about Ben Roethlisberger and his behavior track record. Suddenly, my friend asked, "Dave, this guy's had a few head injuries over the years between concussions and that motorcycle accident... has anyone ever bothered to neurologically evaluate him to see if his cognitive processing and judgement are impaired?"
WOW! Why didn't I think of that? You'd think someone like me, in neurological decline, would've thought of that first?! Well, I didn't, but now that my best friend planted the seed in my brain, this doesn't sound particular crazy. And yes, I've tweeted Roger Goodell and other folks connected to the NFL to ask if a neuropsych evaluation is on the books for Ben Roethlisberger, or if it will be done during his suspension. So far no one knows or is responding to me, but I'll keep asking.
Is it any excuse for Roethlisberger's behavior? HELL NO! But it might explain a few more things to folks studying the consequences of football-related brain injuries. And don't laugh, but the list is getting longer and longer of former players behaving very strangely, and their PET Scans showing serious problems.
For myself, I thankfully only sustained one mild concussion playing football, and three brain MRIs since 2003 have shown nothing there... wrong, that is (just wanted to clarify myself). But, the list of other injuries for me is ridiculously long -- broken ribs, cracked clavicle, separated shoulders, broken hand, lost teeth, broken foot, torn knee cartilage, dislocated hip, cracked pelvis... Wait a minute! And I was shocked to need multi-level fusion surgery in my lumbar spine 3 years ago?! Sheesh! It's a wonder I'm still breathing!
My point is that there may be another reason for Big Ben's off-field conduct, and it may not be just due to "I'm Big Ben! Wanna see my Pride and Joy?" If a multimillionaire professional football player perpetually fails to understand, differentiate, and practice right from wrong, I don't think behavioral counseling is all that's needed. Call me crazy, but I think Mr. Roethlisberger may require more than one "head doctor", if you know what I mean.
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