Dear NFLPA: Drop the Adrian Peterson Case and Do the Right Thing

The two guys in the featured picture look happy at last year’s Super Bowl, but they aren’t working well together lately. For anyone who missed it yesterday, the NFL decided to suspend star running back Adrian Peterson for the rest of 2014, at a minimum. Peterson can apply for reinstatement in April of 2015, but there are no guarantees.

Commissioner Roger Goodell made reference to, in a letter to Peterson, the fact that Peterson’s crime was committed on a four year old, someone far too young to do something about it. In the league statement, he said that Peterson’s son did not have the option to fight back, flee, or call law enforcement. Goodell also stated that nowhere has Peterson shown any “meaningful remorse” for his conduct, leading him to believe that Peterson doesn’t completely understand the severity of his actions. Peterson’s reinstatement will be evaluated based on how he has followed a counseling program that is created for him.

DeMaurice Smith and the NFLPA responded quickly, as they always do. Here is the statement they released early this morning:

Here’s the NFLPA statement on Adrian Peterson suspension. pic.twitter.com/eGZXbxUDbP

— Matt Pepin (@mattpep15) November 18, 2014

Of course, the NFLPA is not appealing any of the facts in the case. There is no dispute of the facts in the case. Peterson plead no contest to a misdemeanor charge. In the eyes of the law, Peterson is guilty. A plea bargain is an admission of guilt. Furthermore, a grand jury indicted Peterson on a felony charge. A room of citizens felt that the evidenced showed actions egregious enough to warrant that type of criminal charge. Where there is smoke there is fire. There is no doubt that Adrian Peterson committed these acts on a child.

What the NFLPA is complaining about is what all guilty parties complain about, the process. Was the process followed correctly? Did the NFL make a deal with Peterson and go back on it? They go on and on about the gap in credibility. They say that Goodell’s office told Peterson his time prior to this would be time served. They continue to pontificate about the process.

The NFLPA needs to back off of this case. They need to look at the situation a little bit differently, and have Peterson take his punishment, go through the program, and come back next season.

It’s not about being right, it’s about doing right. Leaving this alone would be doing right, and I will tell you why on the next page.

Oct 8, 2014; Conroe, TX, USA; Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson watches as attorney Rusty Hardin (not pictured) speaks to the media outside of the Montgomery county courthouse. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

First of all, let’s look at what this young man did. Adrian Peterson beat his four year old son. He beat the child with a weapon, to multiple areas of his body. It is out there, this is not in dispute. Peterson committed several violent acts against a minor child. No plea agreement mitigates that in any way, shape, or form.

Instead of worrying about protocol, how about worrying about the fact that children look up to Adrian Peterson. Kids wear his jersey. Those same kids know what he did. How about the message that is sent, when you fight for a person that could commit such acts? What does it say about a group of people that would rather worry about the exact procedure for a meeting, instead of the fact that one of their members beats up children and thinks that it is OK?

Instead, the NFLPA would have a lot more “credibility” with me if they told Peterson to be contrite, take his punishment, and await reinstatement. They may be right about violations of the process. But sometimes, you have to think about the greater good. The greater good here would be acknowledged that Peterson has a problem, and working with the league to help him solve it. Maybe, the NFLPA could set an example, rather than act like a joke.

If the NFLPA would back the NFL in this, it would have a trickle down effect on future players and situations. If other players see Peterson forced to take his punishment, they will think twice before they commit an act of violence. If they see that the technical aspects of the process are overlooked for the greater good, they will mind their manners a heck of a lot better than they do now. Maybe, just maybe, NFL players would be worth looking up to again, rather than fodder for police jokes.