News broke Tuesday that the NFL has put an eight-game suspension on the table for Denver Broncos cornerback Aquib Talib over an incident at a Dallas nightclub in June where he was shot in the leg.
While the suspension hasn’t been handed down yet, the very idea of it being discussed in the league office shows exactly how stupid the Roger Goodell-led disciplinary system is.
#Broncos Aqib Talib is facing a 8 game suspension
— Bauston Diehards 🏈 ⚾🏀🏒⚽ (@BaustonDiehards) August 9, 2016
Here’s what we know for sure about what happened on the night of June 5. Aqib Talib was shot in the leg outside a Dallas nightclub. That’s it. That’s all we know.
Who shot him? That’s the question and it’s one the Dallas police still haven’t answered. There’s a chance (a good one) that Talib accidentally shot himself. There’s an even better chance that the Dallas police could never even hope to prove that. The truth is the conjecture on Talib accidentally shooting himself all comes from rumors that he “told” some people he did. Not from any official Dallas police report. There’s every reason to believe nothing of any legal consequence is going to come of the Dallas investigation. In fact, it would be shocking if anything did.
But the NFL isn’t the law and they don’t have to care about legality. If Goodell believes Talib was carrying a gun and shot himself, that’s all it will take to hand down a suspension. But would it hold up in the ensuing court case brought by Talib and the NFL Players Association? Not a chance in hell.
Whether Talib is a “victim” here in real life or not is immaterial. In court, after being cleared by the Dallas P.D., he will be and punishing a guy for getting shot will be laughed out of court, no matter where the NFL tries to hand pick its judges from. Going after Talib over this without any charges from the Dallas police is just stupid and a guaranteed court loss for Goodell and the NFL.
WATCH: Aqib Talib on the gun shot incident in Dallas. #9News #Broncos pic.twitter.com/Lfmft1tBRy
— 9NEWS Sports Denver (@9NEWSSports) August 8, 2016
After finally defeating Tom Brady in the DeflateGate cases, Goodell must feel a little froggy. It was his first legit court win in a while, after judges struck down his original Ray Rice, Greg Hardy and Adrian Peterson bans. Goodell got another significant win this week when the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Goodell had acted properly in suspending Adrian Peterson back in 2014.
Goodell, already the owner of a giant melon-like head, probably can’t fit it through his office door right now. But if he wants to keep the good legal vibes going, he needs to hold his finger from the shiny, red suspension button in this case until the Dallas P.D. investigation is done. Otherwise all his recent wins disappear in a wisp of gun smoke.
Gary Kubiak said he feels Aqib Talib could play vs the Rams in the preseason. That's the Broncos third preseason game
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) August 8, 2016
If the Dallas investigation does reveal evidence against Talib, the suspension takes care of itself. If Talib had a gun and shot himself, he’d be facing criminal weapons chargers, one of them a Class 3 felony. He’ll do jail time. But without any real evidence from Dallas, the NFL will look like fools. Again.
Rams Mason found, finally
Los Angeles Rams running back Tre Mason is still alive. That’s the good news. The bad news he’s currently hiding out at his mother’s house, hasn’t contacted the team and looks like he’s in no hurry to report to training camp.
It’s just the latest chapter in an erratic offseason for Mason who seems to really need some mental health assistance. He’s been tasered by the cops, threatened to call the White House and been hospitalized at least once. Last year Mason appeared in 13 games for the Rams, rushing 75 times for 207 yards and a touchdown. He caught 18 passes for 88 yards.
Mason was the Southeastern Conference offensive MVP his final season at Auburn. The Rams picked him in the third round of the 2014 draft after he rushed for 1,816 yards and 23 touchdowns as the Tigers finished 12-1 and lost to Florida State in the 2014 BCS National Championship.
