With all eyes on Greg Hardy as he makes his return to the NFL following a domestic violence dispute that was settled outside of court, former Baltimore running back, Ray Rice is speaking out against domestic violence and is working to be the official spokesperson for the NFL.
Last season, a video of Rice hitting his then-fiancee and dragging her unconscious body out of a hotel elevator was released and everything hit the fan, quickly. News of the incident had already broke and Rice had served his time in the league, but when the video was released and people were able to put the image to the story, the Ravens were quick to distance themselves from the situation. The Baltimore team released Rice in September 2014, and he has since then made is a point to raise awareness of the issue.
“I totally understand what my visual did and the effect it had on society and the survivors of domestic violence. So, for me, to never be forgiven … I understand those things, and I totally take full responsibility for my actions. The one thing I can say is … I have made a lifelong decision to raising awareness about this.
Generally, teams try to steer clear of off-field incidents that do occur, so it is no surprise that Rice did not see teams at his doorstep welcoming him with open arms. That is why it was so surprising when Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones announced that the team would stick with Hardy post-settlement.
Cincinnati Bengal and President of the NFL Players Association told SportsCenter,
“I definitely wonder how a guy that’s had the career he’s had can’t even get a tryout. I definitely think there’s been some sort of effort to not have him in the league. That’s unfortunate. If there was a guy who could take a message out there, that could take a message to a locker room, it seems that Ray Rice would be a kind of guy that could do that.”
Rice explained that the NFL has such a huge platform and the ability to reach millions of people at a time. He also said that he is working to use that platform to inform and advise young players who are never truly prepared for life in the league.
“Young rookies, anybody in college … I want to be able to spread all of my experiences to help other people, to make them understand that domestic violence is not OK, not even one time.”
