There is a pretty big problem in the NFL right now.  It is their number one off field issue, it’s domestic violence.  Football players are punching their spouses in the face and leaving them in the elevator doorway and going out onto a field and are being cheered for.   This has been going on for years, but just now it has begun to grow as a problem.  Some may say football players have been working at football and being a star their entire life and they should not be fired.  That can be countered with playing football is their job but there are many adolescents looking up to these athletes as a role models, it’s their job they should be fired. They could put a stop to this if they could raise the fine from $10,000 to maybe a $100,000 fine then players would think twice before hitting their wife or child.  Changing the penalty from a lifetime ban to a two season because its not right to take that away from them.  People say that is a very extreme punishment.

Athletes are role models, as we all know, but some of them do not deserve to be looked up to for the things they do.  Or do they?  ABC News says that  “Nine out of 10 kids said famous athletes teach children mostly “good things.” But some of the lessons learned from athletes are less than admirable.”  Now  thats how many people say that athletes teach good things, but they also say “kids ranked famous athletes among the most admired people in their lives (73 percent)” So that is saying that three fourths of adolescents in the U.S. look at athletes as role models, and when they are abusing their kids and their spouses what are the 73% going to think?

The NFL is having trouble making a new domestic violence policy right now they have it as a first time offence is a six game suspension and a second time is being banned from the league.  Ray Rice has the possibility of being banned from the NFL for good, in other terms he is banned indefinitely.  Some people think that think that its not right to hit his girlfriend (Now wife) and others think that being banned for good is very extreme.  However a video on CNN news shows Ray Rice “hitting his fiance in the face then left her face down in the elevator doors.”, but others say he has been working to get to the NFL since he could hold a football.  www.sbnation.com says this.  To show how bad this is Brent Schrotenboer from USA Today Sports has a study showing these two different things “In at least fourteen cases, the league or the team suspended or deactivated the player for only one game.” Also this! “Since September 2006, law enforcement authorities have pursued around 50 domestic violence cases against NFL players, including one for murder and at least five allegations of assaulting or choking a pregnant women.”

Choking a pregnant women.  Really?!  That takes us to this, if the NFL players can get away with that and only be suspended for one game.  They may get away and keep playing but they should be fined, they could raise the fine for NFL players.  The penalty for domestic violence now is 93 days in prison with a $500 fine.  Now as we all know NFL players make well above $500.  Can they really push, kick, choke, or punch a woman with a baby in her stomach?   Men are stronger researchers from Livestrong determined that “Men had an average of 72.6 pounds of muscle compared to the 46.2 pounds found in women. The men had 40 percent more muscle mass in the upper body and 33 percent more in the lower body.” Nike sponsors Livestrong I don’t think they would spend millions on clothes sponsoring them if they were not legit.  So even if a girl hits or kicks a man he is almost double her strength so it is unfair, and cowardly to punch her.
 
Athletes should be punished with domestic violence, but the NFL and police should determine what type of punishment it is going to be.  As you can see these cases can vary from murder to a slap, I don’t think its right for a player who is slapping someone in a silly drunken fight to get the same penalty as a player who shot someone and took a life.  So, if you know of, or have seen any type of domestic violence going on in your community bring it up, fix it with them before its too late.