Posted Wed Jun 25th by Monty
I’ve been preparing for news of a suspension toward Brandon Marshall coming down from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the league offices for a few weeks now. Today’s news of another arrest, from March 2008, only adds to my own personal belief that the league will be suspending Marshall for at least a few games in 2008.
This is just speculation, but it’s hard not to infer that consequences will soon follow Marshall’s irresponsible actions. The NFL’s revised Player Conduct Policy clearly states that conviction of a crime is not necessary before the league takes punitive action:
Repeat violations of the personal conduct policy will be dealt with aggressively, including discipline for repeat offenders even when the conduct itself has not yet resulted in a conviction of a crime.
This rap sheet, courtesy the Denver Post, documents everything that Marshall has done up to this point to warrant such action from the league. Four of the incidents stem directly from domestic disputes between he and his girfriend, Rasheedah Watley, while a fifth stems from a violent argument that took place between Marshall and his father. The sixth incident is the DUI arrest, for which Marshall has pleaded not guilty, and whose trial has been postponed until September.
Bill Williamson of ESPN reports that Marshall will be suspended for “at least a game or two” if he is convicted of his DUI arrest.
The only glimmer of hope Broncos fans may have on their side is a statement made by Marshall’s lawyer, Harvey Steinberg. The NFL and the Denver Broncos have both known about the arrest since the day it happened, and no action has been taken yet.
“Given the fact the NFL has known about it and I’m assuming has conducted its own investigation — we sent them a tremendous amount of information about this situation — that if something would have happened, I assumed it would have already happened,” Steinberg said.
A decision to file charges in the March case is still pending, but the NFL can rule independently of the public courts.
I’m not too comforted by Harvey’s comments. Frankly, I don’t want to be. It’s hard to say it, because I love football and my Broncos and want them to win so damn much, but I think Marshall’s earned a few games off. Let him think about what he’s done up to this point. Whether the charges were dropped or not, he still hit a woman, and that will never sit right with me.
On another note, it’s unfair to paint a picture as black and white as this. While Jay Cutler‘s comments saying “There’s always something with him right now,” are all the more clear, Marshall deserves to get some attention for the community service he does as well. Stories like this, where Marshall donated his time to coach local kids at a youth camp just last week. Hopefully the good, which so often goes unreported, outweighs the bad in Marshall’s life, and we can only hope that he really will pull himself together.
We’d like to hear your thoughts on the matter. Should Brandon Marshall be suspended, and if so, for how long?
Brandon Marshall Arrested [BroncoTalk]
Marshall’s rap sheet [courtesy Denver Post]
Broncos Giving Back [DenverBroncos.com]
Published on 06/25/2008 at Wed Jun 25 14:10.
Tagged: Brandon Marshall,Off-Field Incidents,Roger Goodell.