NFL makes Congress look good

No wonder members of Congress are walking around with big smiles on their faces these days. They're used to being the most disgraced people in the country. But now there's one group that has an even worse reputation: the NFL.

It took the case of now-former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice for the world to discover how, for years, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has systematically protected players accused of breaking the law by covering up their crimes. In typical fashion, Goodell at first did nothing about reports that Rice had assaulted his girlfriend. He said it was "ambiguous about what actually happened." Really? How did he think she ended up knocked out cold on the floor?

Only when the first video surfaced of Rice dragging her out of the elevator like a sack of flour did Goodell act – and then only to suspend Rice for two games. Only after the second video of Rice's decking her was released, and only after the Ravens had dropped Rice from the squad, did Goodell suspend him indefinitely. This doesn't mean Goodell changed his policy of leniency. It just means he got caught. One thing for sure: If TMZ had not made those videos public, Ray Rice would still be playing ball, with Goodell's blessing.

Rice is not the only NFL player currently in trouble. Every day, it seems, there's another one, often with conflicting results. Greg Hardy, defensive end for the Carolina Panthers, and Ray McDonald, defensive end for the San Francisco 49ers, also face charges of domestic violence. At first, the Panthers allowed Hardy to continue playing, then reversed themselves and put him on the commissioner's exempt list, off the field until his legal problems are resolved. Meanwhile, the 49ers have allowed McDonald to stay in the game.

When Minnesota Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson was charged with felony child abuse for beating his son with a tree branch – a practice he defends as "stern parenting" – the Vikings originally allowed him to play, until several corporate sponsors and Gov. Mark Dayton complained. Then they did a 180 and put him on the same exempt list as Hardy. Peterson's out of play, but will still collect his full $11.75 million salary. On Sept. 14, Jonathan Dwyer, running back for the Arizona Cardinals, became the latest NFL player to get in trouble off the field, arrested for aggravated assault in a domestic abuse case involving his wife and 17-month-old son.

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But those high-profile players are just the tip of the iceberg. USA Today maintains records on NFL players who break the law, and the numbers are staggering: One out of every 40 NFL players is arrested at least once a year. You couldn't say that about police officers, firefighters, teachers, or members of any other profession.

Some teams have a worse record than others. The Vikings lead the list, with 44 players arrested between January 2000 and September 2014. For the NFL's 32 teams, an average 22 players per team – out of 53 active players and eight on the practice squad – were arrested and charged during the same time period. The most common offense is drunk driving, with 202 arrests during that same period. There were 88 arrests for assault and battery, 82 for drug-related offenses and – Ray Rice is hardly alone – 85 cases of domestic violence. And those are just the cases reported. Many slip through the cracks or are covered up.

As if that's not enough bad news, the NFL, after years of denial, finally admitted last week that nearly a third of retired players will suffer long-term brain damage.

For the NFL, this negative publicity raises many troubling questions, including whether the NFL's philosophy of "Protect the Shield" results in the cover-up of illegal activities, whether the game itself encourages violence both on and off the field and why we Americans, alone in the world, love such a violent sport. But most importantly, it raises questions about Roger Goodell's leadership.

Goodell's made a lot of money for NFL owners over the last eight years, but he's also created and presided over a culture of violence – where spousal abuse is not taken seriously and where players know they can act out violently off the field and get away with it. ESPN's Keith Olbermann said it best: "Mr. Goodell is an enabler of men who beat women."

One thing for sure: Congress would never allow such a flawed leader to remain on the job. Neither should the NFL. Goodell must resign.