Ray Rice APPEALS suspension (1 Viewer)

[zftcg]

I doubt an appeal is even heard til that FBI guy finishes the investigation.

I applaud Goodell for being the only one to stand up to this thug.

The criminal justice system let him off and the woman married him.

I can't make sense, never have been, as to why women stay with wife beaters and that's just a horribly ugly set of circumstances. I do think, though, if there is a hearing and the wife testifies on Rice's behalf it'll hold a ton of weight and he'll be able to play at some point. We are all here in some regard, to some degree, looking out for her best interests and when she takes that away by claiming Rice is some great guy or somesuch....it pretty much leaves no one with a leg to stand on.

If you don't understand why women stay with abusive partners, maybe you should take the time to educate yourself rather than blaming them. Here, I'll help get you started.

I didn't blame her. How dare you make such a statement about me

I read your post as saying that you don't understand why women stay with abusive partners, and then further stating that Janay's decision to marry him, and future potential testimony she gives on his behalf, would make it harder to punish him. I'm not going to get into a semantic debate about whether that constitutes "blaming" her, because that's ultimately an irrelevant point.

I would, however, repeat my suggestion that you learn more about why women are unable to leave these relationships. I agree with you on one point: It's incredibly counterintuitive behavior, and most of us probably think that in an analogous situation, there's no way we would stay in the relationship. And yet every day, there are tons of smart, accomplished women (some of whom may be your friends, family or coworkers) who nonetheless find themselves in these types of situations. It's a unique form of psychological torture that I would argue does far more lasting damage than the physical attacks. And the fact that it's so widespread suggests that it has more to do with human psychology than with the individual decisions of these women.

 

[zftcg]

Ray Rice contends that he told the truth, and Ozzie Newsome indicates Rice didn't lie to the Ravens.

Sorry, but based on the little we know at this point I'm all-in on Goodell being the liar here.

Then you also have to believe Bisciotti and Cass are liars. Because they've been clear Rice told Goodell he slapped her after she attacked him.

I find it curious that people keep relying on Newsome's statement to claim Goodell is a liar when it doesn't even relate to the meeting between Rice and Goodell.

I think the NFL and Biscotti are making a mountain of difference out of a molehill of semantics.

I expect Rice's story accurately describes what happened in the video. Unless you don't want it to for your own reasons.

The difference between her attacking him and her reacting to him spitting on her is not semantic. The difference between a punch and a slap is not semantic.

Are you going to explain why you are still relying on Newsome's statement about one meeting to call Goodell, Bisciotti and Cass liars about a completely different meeting?

I didn't realize Biscotti wasn't referring to the meeting with Newsome. So if his meeting was separate from Newsome it does change my thinking some.

But if you believe that Goodell changed the punishment because of the content of the video rather than the publication of the video...well...

Ultimately that's where I'm coming from. He punished Rice then when the heat got hot he punished him again without any substantial change in the case. Because he wanted to.

All of this debate over whether Rice lied, or whether that's a sufficient rationale for an indefinite suspension, is beside the point. The lying is a fig leaf. The two games were for the black eye he gave Janay. The indefinite is for the one he gave the league.

 

[Christo]

Ray Rice contends that he told the truth, and Ozzie Newsome indicates Rice didn't lie to the Ravens.

Sorry, but based on the little we know at this point I'm all-in on Goodell being the liar here.

Then you also have to believe Bisciotti and Cass are liars. Because they've been clear Rice told Goodell he slapped her after she attacked him.

I find it curious that people keep relying on Newsome's statement to claim Goodell is a liar when it doesn't even relate to the meeting between Rice and Goodell.

I think the NFL and Biscotti are making a mountain of difference out of a molehill of semantics.

I expect Rice's story accurately describes what happened in the video. Unless you don't want it to for your own reasons.

The difference between her attacking him and her reacting to him spitting on her is not semantic. The difference between a punch and a slap is not semantic.

Are you going to explain why you are still relying on Newsome's statement about one meeting to call Goodell, Bisciotti and Cass liars about a completely different meeting?

I didn't realize Biscotti wasn't referring to the meeting with Newsome. So if his meeting was separate from Newsome it does change my thinking some.

But if you believe that Goodell changed the punishment because of the content of the video rather than the publication of the video...well...

Ultimately that's where I'm coming from. He punished Rice then when the heat got hot he punished him again without any substantial change in the case. Because he wanted to.

All of this debate over whether Rice lied, or whether that's a sufficient rationale for an indefinite suspension, is beside the point. The lying is a fig leaf. The two games were for the black eye he gave Janay. The indefinite is for the one he gave the league.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ray Rice contends that he told the truth, and Ozzie Newsome indicates Rice didn't lie to the Ravens.

Sorry, but based on the little we know at this point I'm all-in on Goodell being the liar here.

Then you also have to believe Bisciotti and Cass are liars. Because they've been clear Rice told Goodell he slapped her after she attacked him.I find it curious that people keep relying on Newsome's statement to claim Goodell is a liar when it doesn't even relate to the meeting between Rice and Goodell.

Ray rice has more credibility here in my eyes than any other party in CYA mode

 

[Christo]

Ray Rice contends that he told the truth, and Ozzie Newsome indicates Rice didn't lie to the Ravens.

Sorry, but based on the little we know at this point I'm all-in on Goodell being the liar here.

Then you also have to believe Bisciotti and Cass are liars. Because they've been clear Rice told Goodell he slapped her after she attacked him.I find it curious that people keep relying on Newsome's statement to claim Goodell is a liar when it doesn't even relate to the meeting between Rice and Goodell.

Ray rice has more credibility here in my eyes than any other party in CYA mode

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ray Rice contends that he told the truth, and Ozzie Newsome indicates Rice didn't lie to the Ravens.

Sorry, but based on the little we know at this point I'm all-in on Goodell being the liar here.

Then you also have to believe Bisciotti and Cass are liars. Because they've been clear Rice told Goodell he slapped her after she attacked him.I find it curious that people keep relying on Newsome's statement to claim Goodell is a liar when it doesn't even relate to the meeting between Rice and Goodell.

Ray rice has more credibility here in my eyes than any other party in CYA mode

Laugh all you want, it's sad but true.

 

[fatness]

New information

Just hours after running back Ray Rice knocked out his then-fiancée with a left hook at the Revel Hotel Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the Baltimore Ravens' director of security, Darren Sanders, reached an Atlantic City police officer by phone. While watching surveillance video -- shot from inside the elevator where Rice's punch knocked his fiancée unconscious -- the officer, who told Sanders he just happened to be a Ravens fan, described in detail to Sanders what he was seeing.

Sanders quickly relayed the damning video's play-by-play to team executives in Baltimore, unknowingly starting a seven-month odyssey that has mushroomed into the biggest crisis confronting a commissioner in the NFL's 95-year history.

"Outside the Lines" interviewed more than 20 sources over the past 11 days -- team officials, current and former league officials, NFL Players Association representatives and associates, advisers and friends of Rice -- and found a pattern of misinformation and misdirection employed by the Ravens and the NFL since that February night.

The Ravens also consulted frequently with Rice's Philadelphia defense attorney, Michael J. Diamondstein, who in early April had obtained a copy of the inside-elevator video and told Cass: "It's f---ing horrible." Cass did not request a copy of the video from Diamondstein but instead began urging Rice's legal team to get Rice accepted into a pretrial intervention program after being told some of the program's benefits. Among them: It would keep the inside-elevator video from becoming public.

 

[fatness]

For its part, the NFL -- which in other player discipline cases has been able to obtain information that's been sealed by court order -- took an uncharacteristically passive approach when it came to gathering evidence, opening itself up to widespread criticism, allegations of inconsistent approaches to player discipline and questions about whether Goodell gave Rice -- the corporate face of the Baltimore franchise -- a light punishment as a favor to his good friend Bisciotti. Four sources said Ravens executives, including Bisciotti, Cass and Newsome, urged Goodell and other league executives to give Rice no more than a two-game suspension, and that's what Goodell did on July 24.

Most sources spoke with "Outside the Lines" on the condition of anonymity, citing the NFL's just-launched, self-described independent investigation by Robert S. Mueller III, the former FBI chief, which is being overseen by John Mara, the New York Giants' owner, and Art Rooney II, the Pittsburgh Steelers' co-owner. Mara and Rooney are close confidants of Goodell's. The interviews, viewed together, paint a picture of a league and a franchise whose actions -- and inaction -- combined to conceal -- or ignore -- the graphic violence of Rice's assault. When evidence of it surfaced anyway, the NFL and the Ravens quickly shifted gears and simultaneously attempted to pin the blame on Rice and his alleged lack of truthfulness with Goodell about what had happened inside the elevator.

 

[fatness]

The Ravens' head of security, Sanders, heard a detailed description of the inside-elevator scene within hours and shared it with Ravens officials in Baltimore.

Goodell has been steadfast that no one in the NFL had seen the inside-elevator video until Sept. 8, the same day the public did. Both the team and the league presumably had a copy of the police report: Ray and Janay were arrested shortly before 3 a.m. on Feb. 15 and charged with simple assault. Rice was accused of "assault by attempting to cause bodily injury to J. Palmer, specifically by striking her with his hand, rendering her unconscious, at the Revel Casino," the police report says. (Janay's charges would later be dropped.)

But within hours of the elevator attack, an employee of the Ravens was describing the inside-elevator video to friends in graphic detail, telling confidants that Rice knocked out his then-fiancée with a punch and that the video was "really bad," according to a source close to a Ravens official.

The Super Bowl-winning coach urged his bosses to release Rice immediately, especially if the team had evidence Rice had thrown a punch. That opinion was shared by George Kokinis, the Baltimore director of player personnel, according to a fifth source outside the organization but familiar with the team's thinking.

But Harbaugh's recommendation to cut the six-year veteran running back was quickly rejected by Ravens management: owner Bisciotti, team president Cass and GM Newsome.

 

[Todd Andrews]

Ravens and Goodell and Christo are all vile.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Can ray get resigned and active for week 4 for the 35K contest?

 

[fatness]

The day after the incident in Atlantic City, Rice met Kyle Jakobe, his personal trainer and one of his closest friends, at Jakobe's gym, Sweat Performance, in Timonium, Maryland. In Jakobe's office, Rice wept as he described what happened between him and his future wife. "I'm holding him, he's crying, he's devastated," Jakobe said. According to Jakobe, Rice didn't sugarcoat what happened. The running back told his friend much of what we now know: Rice struck Janay in the face with his left fist and sent her careening into the elevator wall, where she struck her head and was knocked out instantly. "He motioned it to me," Jakobe said, making a closed fist and bringing it across his body. "He was like 'Hey, this is what happened.'"

Rice also leveled with his general manager, Newsome, who had a Hall of Fame career as a tight end with the Cleveland Browns. Rice sat down with Harbaugh, as well, and Harbaugh later described their conversation in a June interview with ESPN The Magazine. "I talked to Ray right away," Harbaugh said, "and what he told me right away -- we always tell our guys, 'Never lie, never cheat, never steal' -- he told me the exact truth of what happened, and it held up all the way through. He didn't sugarcoat it, he admitted what he did wrong, he explained everything to a T. Everything I've heard since then is held up to what he said."

after Ravens offensive lineman Jah Reid was arrested March 8 in Key West, Florida, and charged with two counts of battery for his role in a bar fight, Harbaugh, according to several sources, again went to Newsome and advocated that the three Ravens players arrested in the offseason -- Rice, Reid and wide receiver Deonte Thompson -- be released. Newsome, according to what Rice was told, bristled at the recommendation, saying he was the decision-maker in the matter, not Harbaugh, and he believed in second chances. Newsome believed if the team had weathered the controversy in 2000 when All-Pro linebacker Ray Lewis was charged in a double homicide after a Super Bowl party in Atlanta, and had endured the criticism after running back Jamal Lewis' guilty plea to cocaine trafficking in 2004, it could certainly weather the controversy surrounding this trio of arrests, too. The Ravens on Friday denied this: "John Harbaugh did not want to release Ray Rice until he saw the second video on September 8 for the first time. The video changed everything for all of us," the team said.

 

[dschuler]

Looks like a can of worms might have opened back up

 

[dschuler]

Ray Rice is washed up anyways, prolly why Harbaugh wanted him cut. Between his college years at Rutgers and his first few in the league they ran him straight into the ground.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Looks like a can of worms might have opened back up

AP I see your lacerations and raise you a coverup that goes to the top

 

[fatness]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ray Rice is washed up anyways, prolly why Harbaugh wanted him cut. Between his college years at Rutgers and his first few in the league they ran him straight into the ground.

That's my only question here. Why call in a favor to get rice for, two more games?

Absurd, unending ineptitude here or a glimpse into just how scummy business as usual has been In the league.

 

[dschuler]

Looks like a can of worms might have opened back up

AP I see your lacerations and raise you a coverup that goes to the top

Next we will hear that ADP was camping with Zygi Wilf when he whipped his kid with a switch.

 

[fatness]

Minutes later, Rice's phone buzzed. He could scarcely believe what he was looking at-- back-to-back text messages from Bisciotti. Rice read them aloud so everyone in the room could hear them:

Hey Ray, just want to let you know, we loved you as a player, it was great having you here. Hopefully all these things are going to die down. I wish the best for you and Janay.

When you're done with football, I'd like you to know you have a job waiting for you with the Ravens helping young guys getting acclimated to the league.

Rice was flabbergasted. One minute Bisciotti and the Ravens were essentially calling him a liar, the next Bisciotti was quietly offering him a job? Rice took a screen shot of the message, but Jakobe reminded him that anyone could send the text and simply change the name in the contacts to "Steve Bisciotti" to make it appear it had come from the Ravens owner. So Rice deleted Bisciotti's name in his contacts and took a second screen shot of his phone, leaving only the message and the cellphone number. That way there could be no denying who had sent it.

 

[dschuler]

Ray Rice is washed up anyways, prolly why Harbaugh wanted him cut. Between his college years at Rutgers and his first few in the league they ran him straight into the ground.

That's my only question here. Why call in a favor to get rice for, two more games? Absurd, unending ineptitude here or a glimpse into just how scummy business as usual has been In the league.

Exactly, I thought Rice was on his way out already before this season started. The writing on the wall was his dismal performance last season. Pierce clearly outplayed him in my mind. Rice had 715 carries his last two seasons in college alone, he definitely lost a step. Why coverup for a guy on his way out of the door? Makes zero sense. Could see a cover up on a player like Peyton Manning or Brett Favre but no way Ray Rice.

 

[dschuler]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

 

[dschuler]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

 

[dschuler]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

 

[Smack Tripper]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

I think you're under estimating his value in the league In general and to his franchise and region in particular.

Ray Rice wasn't Marshall Faulk but he's a top 20 name in the league

 

[GroveDiesel]

That OTL report is crushing. Goodell should be fired, Bisciotti should be forced to sell the team and Newsome should be fired as well.

Screw all those guys. Newsome and Bisciotti are the worst, but Goodell sucks and deserves to be fired just for being so biased and playing favorites throughout the league over and over again.

 

[dschuler]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

 

[GroveDiesel]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

 

[GroveDiesel]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

I'm not sure that he did see it, but I believe 100% that he could have if he wanted. If he didn't see it, it was because he wanted plausible deniability.

He's even been caught outright lying by claiming that it would have been against the law to get the video from the hotel.

 

[dschuler]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

Local Charities aren't even a drop in the bucket compared to national marketing like a Peyton Manning or a Brett Favre. If half the starting running backs in this league never played again, the NFL wouldn't blink twice. They don't contribute to the pie. Asinine to think otherwise.

 

[dschuler]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

I'm not sure that he did see it, but I believe 100% that he could have if he wanted. If he didn't see it, it was because he wanted plausible deniability. He's even been caught outright lying by claiming that it would have been against the law to get the video from the hotel.

This would be more along the lines of what I think happened. IT MAKES SENSE that he could have gotten the video if he wanted it. IT MAKES SENSE that he didn't see the video too for the reasons you spoke of. IT DOESNT MAKE SENSE to see the video and lie about it. Goodell is making more than any player in the league. Again, no incentive to risk it for such a peasant in the league of QBs.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

We are perhaps talking about two different things but I'm responding to what you wrote.

You are speaking now about the video.

But my original response was to the fact we don't know what was said between goodell and rice. While true, that would also mean the nfl chose not to read or not to believe the police report which provided an accurate report of what happened.

So you're telling me the nfl believed a criminal over a police report.

 

[Jerry Curl]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

We are perhaps talking about two different things but I'm responding to what you wrote.

You are speaking now about the video.

But my original response was to the fact we don't know what was said between goodell and rice. While true, that would also mean the nfl chose not to read or not to believe the police report which provided an accurate report of what happened.

So you're telling me the nfl believed a criminal over a police report.

I watch football for the game, I notice so many on this site obviously watch it for the drama.

 

[dschuler]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.

With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

We are perhaps talking about two different things but I'm responding to what you wrote.You are speaking now about the video.

But my original response was to the fact we don't know what was said between goodell and rice. While true, that would also mean the nfl chose not to read or not to believe the police report which provided an accurate report of what happened.

So you're telling me the nfl believed a criminal over a police report.

No I am not, but a police report is just that. It's a piece of freakin paper that details what happened. When you interview someone with the report in your hand, you can get more information to what truly happened. Again, since you can't seem to understand this, if they are looking at the report together, which they did, and they discuss what happened, which they did, the discussion process explains what would be written in the report. A face to face interaction is much more fulfilling than a piece of paper. A lot of people, maybe Rice included, would have told him he hit her and it was a combination of hitting the railing and the alcohol that caused her to black out.

 

[GroveDiesel]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

Local Charities aren't even a drop in the bucket compared to national marketing like a Peyton Manning or a Brett Favre. If half the starting running backs in this league never played again, the NFL wouldn't blink twice. They don't contribute to the pie. Asinine to think otherwise.

Sure, that logic applies to Goodell, but all that stuff mattered a lot to the Ravens. M&T bank is paying the Ravens $66M over 10 years for stadium naming rights. Ray Rice was the face of the team and that partnership specifically. So a Rice meant a lot to the Ravens and Bisciotti.

So Bisciotti called in a favor to his really good friend Goodell and Goodell did him a favor instead of doing his due diligence.

I very much believe that it was outright malice and deception by the Ravens, who knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what really happened, and that it was favoritism and incompetence by Goodell.

Goodell has always played favorites. The Ravens, Steelers, Giants, Patriots and Broncos have received favorable treatment again and again under Goodell. He was always able to get away with it by citing confidentiality and using the clauses in the CBA that give him broad discretion. But he got nailed this time. He helped his friend out and gave Rice leniency on the request of his buddy Bisciotti.

If Ralph Wilson or Russ Brandon from the Bills had made that request, Goodell would have politely rebuffed them, obtained the tape, secretly leaked it to the media and crushed Rice the first time around. That's why Goodell should be gone. He played politics on an issue that was beyond stupid to play politics with and he got found out. Nobody with a brain believes for one second that he cares about the issue now, he only cares that he got caught and is trying to save his job and the reputation of the league that he has tramped into the mud.

 

[dschuler]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

Local Charities aren't even a drop in the bucket compared to national marketing like a Peyton Manning or a Brett Favre. If half the starting running backs in this league never played again, the NFL wouldn't blink twice. They don't contribute to the pie. Asinine to think otherwise.

Sure, that logic applies to Goodell, but all that stuff mattered a lot to the Ravens. M&T bank is paying the Ravens $66M over 10 years for stadium naming rights. Ray Rice was the face of the team and that partnership specifically. So a Rice meant a lot to the Ravens and Bisciotti.

So Bisciotti called in a favor to his really good friend Goodell and Goodell did him a favor instead of doing his due diligence.

I very much believe that it was outright malice and deception by the Ravens, who knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what really happened, and that it was favoritism and incompetence by Goodell.

Goodell has always played favorites. The Ravens, Steelers, Giants, Patriots and Broncos have received favorable treatment again and again under Goodell. He was always able to get away with it by citing confidentiality and using the clauses in the CBA that give him broad discretion. But he got nailed this time. He helped his friend out and gave Rice leniency on the request of his buddy Bisciotti.

If Ralph Wilson or Russ Brandon from the Bills had made that request, Goodell would have politely rebuffed them, obtained the tape, secretly leaked it to the media and crushed Rice the first time around. That's why Goodell should be gone. He played politics on an issue that was beyond stupid to play politics with and he got found out. Nobody with a brain believes for one second that he cares about the issue now, he only cares that he got caught and is trying to save his job and the reputation of the league that he has tramped into the mud.

66Mil over ten years isn't an absurd amount of money. AT&T is paying three times that amount for the Boys. And if you think an average RB is the reason that deal happened, you should get checked into an insane asylum. Again, Ray Rice isn't a brand name. Ray Rice doesn't make partnership agreements for his franchise. That's hilarious.

 

[Bojang0301]

REMEMBER THE BOUNTYGATE! Time to go Goodell.

 

[dschuler]

REMEMBER THE BOUNTYGATE! Time to go Goodell.

Get rid of Goodell and get who? Everyone is so quick to fire/impeach everyone for any mistake. The NFL has 1,700 players and many times more than that with employees. He isn't a baby sitter, he can't tuck everyone in every night and make sure they don't get in trouble. Discipline is only one aspect of being a commissioner.

 

[GroveDiesel]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

Local Charities aren't even a drop in the bucket compared to national marketing like a Peyton Manning or a Brett Favre. If half the starting running backs in this league never played again, the NFL wouldn't blink twice. They don't contribute to the pie. Asinine to think otherwise.

Sure, that logic applies to Goodell, but all that stuff mattered a lot to the Ravens. M&T bank is paying the Ravens $66M over 10 years for stadium naming rights. Ray Rice was the face of the team and that partnership specifically. So a Rice meant a lot to the Ravens and Bisciotti.

So Bisciotti called in a favor to his really good friend Goodell and Goodell did him a favor instead of doing his due diligence.

I very much believe that it was outright malice and deception by the Ravens, who knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what really happened, and that it was favoritism and incompetence by Goodell.

Goodell has always played favorites. The Ravens, Steelers, Giants, Patriots and Broncos have received favorable treatment again and again under Goodell. He was always able to get away with it by citing confidentiality and using the clauses in the CBA that give him broad discretion. But he got nailed this time. He helped his friend out and gave Rice leniency on the request of his buddy Bisciotti.

If Ralph Wilson or Russ Brandon from the Bills had made that request, Goodell would have politely rebuffed them, obtained the tape, secretly leaked it to the media and crushed Rice the first time around. That's why Goodell should be gone. He played politics on an issue that was beyond stupid to play politics with and he got found out. Nobody with a brain believes for one second that he cares about the issue now, he only cares that he got caught and is trying to save his job and the reputation of the league that he has tramped into the mud.

66Mil over ten years isn't an absurd amount of money. AT&T is paying three times that amount for the Boys. And if you think an average RB is the reason that deal happened, you should get checked into an insane asylum. Again, Ray Rice isn't a brand name. Ray Rice doesn't make partnership agreements for his franchise. That's hilarious.

You're 100% wrong on this. Rice absolutely WAS the face of the franchise and was involved in pretty much every piece of local marketing and community outreach. It made the Ravens look horrible and all their partners that Rice did marketing for look bad as well.

 

[dschuler]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

Local Charities aren't even a drop in the bucket compared to national marketing like a Peyton Manning or a Brett Favre. If half the starting running backs in this league never played again, the NFL wouldn't blink twice. They don't contribute to the pie. Asinine to think otherwise.

Sure, that logic applies to Goodell, but all that stuff mattered a lot to the Ravens. M&T bank is paying the Ravens $66M over 10 years for stadium naming rights. Ray Rice was the face of the team and that partnership specifically. So a Rice meant a lot to the Ravens and Bisciotti.

So Bisciotti called in a favor to his really good friend Goodell and Goodell did him a favor instead of doing his due diligence.

I very much believe that it was outright malice and deception by the Ravens, who knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what really happened, and that it was favoritism and incompetence by Goodell.

Goodell has always played favorites. The Ravens, Steelers, Giants, Patriots and Broncos have received favorable treatment again and again under Goodell. He was always able to get away with it by citing confidentiality and using the clauses in the CBA that give him broad discretion. But he got nailed this time. He helped his friend out and gave Rice leniency on the request of his buddy Bisciotti.

If Ralph Wilson or Russ Brandon from the Bills had made that request, Goodell would have politely rebuffed them, obtained the tape, secretly leaked it to the media and crushed Rice the first time around. That's why Goodell should be gone. He played politics on an issue that was beyond stupid to play politics with and he got found out. Nobody with a brain believes for one second that he cares about the issue now, he only cares that he got caught and is trying to save his job and the reputation of the league that he has tramped into the mud.

66Mil over ten years isn't an absurd amount of money. AT&T is paying three times that amount for the Boys. And if you think an average RB is the reason that deal happened, you should get checked into an insane asylum. Again, Ray Rice isn't a brand name. Ray Rice doesn't make partnership agreements for his franchise. That's hilarious.

You're 100% wrong on this. Rice absolutely WAS the face of the franchise and was involved in pretty much every piece of local marketing and community outreach. It made the Ravens look horrible and all their partners that Rice did marketing for look bad as well.

You must have a double digit IQ. Again, local marketing and community outreach aren't #### to the NFL pocketbooks. Having Ray Rice take a couple pictures with a hospitalized kid isn't going to make the team a billion dollars. Guess what, Rice is gone, and now there will be a new face for the Ravens. It's that easy. 99.9% of these players are interchangeable. Only a couple per generation can truly have an affect on the overall marketing of the sport. Ray Rice is in a galaxy far, far, far away from ever being that. And they definitely aren't doing any groundwork to set up any kind of team partnership deals.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Ultimately, on April 1, the Revel, under subpoena, provided Diamondstein with a copy, and he received the same copy from prosecutors on April 5. By phone, Diamondstein told Cass that the video was "f---ing horrible" and that it was clear "Ray knocked her the f--- out." The lawyer advised Cass that the video, if released, would amount to a public relations disaster for the Ravens and for his client.

Cass listened carefully but never asked Diamondstein to provide the Ravens with a copy of the video -- nor, for that matter, did anyone from the NFL ask Diamondstein for a copy, several sources say.

Instead, Cass strategized on the best next move for Rice in court, agreeing with Diamondstein that the video would almost certainly become public if the Rice case went to trial.

Before leaving for New York, Rice was told by several Ravens executives that he had better be completely honest and forthcoming with the commissioner because the organization believed Goodell had seen a copy of the inside-elevator video. A source confirmed to "Outside the Lines" that the team believed this. It's unclear why exactly the Ravens thought Goodell had seen the video -- whether they had been told that or whether the assumed so given the league's aggressive investigative tactics in other cases. Asked for comment, the Ravens parsed that description Friday, calling in an "assumption" and not a "belief." It is well-known among players and union officials that Goodell won't stand for someone lying to him about behavior; he will harshly punish anyone he discovers has lied to him.With his wife sitting by his side in a conference room, Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.

Last week, Goodell told CBS News that, during the disciplinary meeting, Rice provided an "ambiguous" account of what had happened inside the elevator. And in its Sept. 12 letter justifying the indefinite suspension, the league said Rice's account was "starkly different" from what was seen on the inside-elevator video. Four sources, however, told "Outside the Lines" that Rice gave Goodell a truthful account that he struck his fiancée.

Only the people that were in the room with Roger and Ray know what was said, everything else just speculation. I have a hard time believing Ray Rice told Goodell exactly what happened, he most likely said he struck her and she hit the railing to become a little woozy because she was so intoxicated. That's more along the lines of what I would expect.

Do you have a hard time believing the league disregarded the police report which contains statements describing the same thing rice did?

Yes. I think ink and speech communicate very differently than video footage.

I think you're making leaps of logic to get to the destination you desire as opposed to an assessment of what's been reported.

Actually you are. Everything reported about the NFL covering the video up has been speculation. There has been no proof Roger Goodell saw the elevator video before we did. If there was, his job would be on the line. There are erroneous reports all the time. Everything is speculation at this point for a bum that was carried by a possession receiver through the playoffs and in the Super Bowl.

We are perhaps talking about two different things but I'm responding to what you wrote. You are speaking now about the video.

But my original response was to the fact we don't know what was said between goodell and rice. While true, that would also mean the nfl chose not to read or not to believe the police report which provided an accurate report of what happened.

So you're telling me the nfl believed a criminal over a police report.

No I don't, but a police report is just that. It's a piece of freakin paper that details what happened. When you interview someone with the report in your hand, you can get more information to what truly happened. Again, since you can't seem to understand this, if they are looking at the report together, which they did, and they discuss what happened, which they did, the discussion process explains what would be written in the report. A face to face interaction is much more fulfilling than a piece of paper. A lot of people, maybe Rice included, would have told him he hit her and it was a combination of hitting the railing and the alcohol that caused her to black out.

The bolded basically invalidates the rest of what follows. Unless, again, you are willing to make a leap in logic.

While I appreciate your concerns about my comprehension, they are unfounded given your failure to communicate clearly.

 

[GroveDiesel]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

Except that he was the face of the franchise. Raised a ton of money for local charities, was good friends with Baltimore's mayor, was the official spokesperson for the team's biggest sponsor, etc. Oh, and Bisciotti and Goodell are very good friends. Like good enough friends that they happened to be playing golf at Augusta at the same time all this was going on despite their obvious lies that they didn't golf together.

Local Charities aren't even a drop in the bucket compared to national marketing like a Peyton Manning or a Brett Favre. If half the starting running backs in this league never played again, the NFL wouldn't blink twice. They don't contribute to the pie. Asinine to think otherwise.

Sure, that logic applies to Goodell, but all that stuff mattered a lot to the Ravens. M&T bank is paying the Ravens $66M over 10 years for stadium naming rights. Ray Rice was the face of the team and that partnership specifically. So a Rice meant a lot to the Ravens and Bisciotti.

So Bisciotti called in a favor to his really good friend Goodell and Goodell did him a favor instead of doing his due diligence.

I very much believe that it was outright malice and deception by the Ravens, who knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what really happened, and that it was favoritism and incompetence by Goodell.

Goodell has always played favorites. The Ravens, Steelers, Giants, Patriots and Broncos have received favorable treatment again and again under Goodell. He was always able to get away with it by citing confidentiality and using the clauses in the CBA that give him broad discretion. But he got nailed this time. He helped his friend out and gave Rice leniency on the request of his buddy Bisciotti.

If Ralph Wilson or Russ Brandon from the Bills had made that request, Goodell would have politely rebuffed them, obtained the tape, secretly leaked it to the media and crushed Rice the first time around. That's why Goodell should be gone. He played politics on an issue that was beyond stupid to play politics with and he got found out. Nobody with a brain believes for one second that he cares about the issue now, he only cares that he got caught and is trying to save his job and the reputation of the league that he has tramped into the mud.

66Mil over ten years isn't an absurd amount of money. AT&T is paying three times that amount for the Boys. And if you think an average RB is the reason that deal happened, you should get checked into an insane asylum. Again, Ray Rice isn't a brand name. Ray Rice doesn't make partnership agreements for his franchise. That's hilarious.

You're 100% wrong on this. Rice absolutely WAS the face of the franchise and was involved in pretty much every piece of local marketing and community outreach. It made the Ravens look horrible and all their partners that Rice did marketing for look bad as well.

You must have a double digit IQ. Again, local marketing and community outreach aren't #### to the NFL pocketbooks. Having Ray Rice take a couple pictures with a hospitalized kid isn't going to make the team a billion dollars. Guess what, Rice is gone, and now there will be a new face for the Ravens. It's that easy. 99.9% of these players are interchangeable. Only a couple per generation can truly have an affect on the overall marketing of the sport. Ray Rice is in a galaxy far, far, far away from ever being that. And they definitely aren't doing any groundwork to set up any kind of team partnership deals.

The fact that you can't differentiate between local team advertising and national league advertising is pretty stunning.

 

[dschuler]

No I don't, but a police report is just that. It's a piece of freakin paper that details what happened. When you interview someone with the report in your hand, you can get more information to what truly happened. Again, since you can't seem to understand this, if they are looking at the report together, which they did, and they discuss what happened, which they did, the discussion process explains what would be written in the report. A face to face interaction is much more fulfilling than a piece of paper. A lot of people, maybe Rice included, would have told him he hit her and it was a combination of hitting the railing and the alcohol that caused her to black out.

The bolded basically invalidates the rest of what follows. Unless, again, you are willing to make a leap in logic.

While I appreciate your concerns about my comprehension, they are unfounded given your failure to communicate clearly.

Glad that you had to resort to grammatical errors. A common first sign to show that you have acknowledge you are wrong on a topic.

 

[Smack Tripper]

No I don't, but a police report is just that. It's a piece of freakin paper that details what happened. When you interview someone with the report in your hand, you can get more information to what truly happened. Again, since you can't seem to understand this, if they are looking at the report together, which they did, and they discuss what happened, which they did, the discussion process explains what would be written in the report. A face to face interaction is much more fulfilling than a piece of paper. A lot of people, maybe Rice included, would have told him he hit her and it was a combination of hitting the railing and the alcohol that caused her to black out.

The bolded basically invalidates the rest of what follows. Unless, again, you are willing to make a leap in logic.

While I appreciate your concerns about my comprehension, they are unfounded given your failure to communicate clearly.

Glad that you had to resort to grammatical errors. A common first sign to show that you have acknowledge you are wrong on a topic.

it's not an error in grammar it's an error in logic.

You are telling me you don't believe the nfl was ignorant of nor ignored the police report in one breath and then telling me exactly how that may have happened in the following paragraph. You are entitled to your opinion but realize people have the opinion that the earth is flat.

I'm done playing whack a mole with your shoddy arguments that show very little associate with a reasonable reality. If you were half as smart as you think you are, you might just be trouble kid.

 

[dschuler]

No I don't, but a police report is just that. It's a piece of freakin paper that details what happened. When you interview someone with the report in your hand, you can get more information to what truly happened. Again, since you can't seem to understand this, if they are looking at the report together, which they did, and they discuss what happened, which they did, the discussion process explains what would be written in the report. A face to face interaction is much more fulfilling than a piece of paper. A lot of people, maybe Rice included, would have told him he hit her and it was a combination of hitting the railing and the alcohol that caused her to black out.

The bolded basically invalidates the rest of what follows. Unless, again, you are willing to make a leap in logic.

While I appreciate your concerns about my comprehension, they are unfounded given your failure to communicate clearly.

Glad that you had to resort to grammatical errors. A common first sign to show that you have acknowledge you are wrong on a topic.

it's not an error in grammar it's an error in logic.

You are telling me you don't believe the nfl was ignorant of nor ignored the police report in one breath and then telling me exactly how that may have happened in the following paragraph. You are entitled to your opinion but realize people have the opinion that the earth is flat.

I'm done playing whack a mole with your shoddy arguments that show very little associate with a reasonable reality. If you were half as smart as you think you are, you might just be trouble kid.

It is only logical to think the NFL would look at the report and use the discussion with Ray Rice and the information they gained from both of them to come to a intelligent conclusion.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

There is no incentive to keep Rice in the league. Guy isn't a top 50 NFL name, people only know him for fantasy football. He went to a crap football program, never won anything in college. He has never led the league in rushing. In fact, he's only finished top 5 in rushing once his entire career. He's undersized and slow. He's never been very marketable. Doesn't play for a prestigious franchise with a huge fan base. Again, not seeing any incentive to cover up anything for this guy.

He was VERY marketable in Baltimore. It's the main gist of the ESPN article.

 

[Christo]

Ravens and Goodell and Christo are all vile.

 

[fourd]

No I don't, but a police report is just that. It's a piece of freakin paper that details what happened. When you interview someone with the report in your hand, you can get more information to what truly happened. Again, since you can't seem to understand this, if they are looking at the report together, which they did, and they discuss what happened, which they did, the discussion process explains what would be written in the report. A face to face interaction is much more fulfilling than a piece of paper. A lot of people, maybe Rice included, would have told him he hit her and it was a combination of hitting the railing and the alcohol that caused her to black out.

The bolded basically invalidates the rest of what follows. Unless, again, you are willing to make a leap in logic.

While I appreciate your concerns about my comprehension, they are unfounded given your failure to communicate clearly.

Glad that you had to resort to grammatical errors. A common first sign to show that you have acknowledge you are wrong on a topic.

I think it should be acknowledged.

 

[Slim_Shady]

I believe the league leaked out the video after the public outcry in order to make up for their mistake with the 2 game suspension. They were thinking they could cover this up by claiming ignorance on never seeing the video prior to the initial suspension. Isn't it funny how quickly both the Ravens and the league reacted after the video was released. I think it was within hours of the video being leaked out. It appears to me they planned all of this out ahead of time. Goodell and Ravens brass both deserve to be fired over Ricegate. This is a complete coverup that went wrong.