Timeout! Why Are We Ignoring the Gender-Based Violence in the NFL?

Warning: This blog post contains mild descriptions of incidents of domestic and sexual violence. Please proceed with caution.

Disclaimer: In this blog post, we will be focusing on gender-based sexual and domestic violence; however, gender-based violence can occur in any form of mental, physical, or sexual harm/suffering, threats of such harm, or withholding of someone’s personal liberties. (unicef.org)

I have spent many years in a strange limbo between being a life-long National Football League (NFL) fan (Go Birds!) and being an avid advocate for survivors of gender-based violence. And you probably don’t need me to tell you why this has been such a contradictory experience for me because it is not exactly a secret that the NFL has a history of handling gender-based violence inadequately. Many players are accused, arrested, and tried for sexual and domestic violence, yet are never held accountable by their employer.

Now, you may be saying: “Tatianna, why is it the NFL’s job to punish someone for something that occurred outside of the workplace?”

Theres a few reasons, but I’ll start with directing you to a wonderfully written 2024 article from the National Organization for Women titled After the Whistle: How NFL Games Affect Domestic Violence Rates. It is an informative read, and the TLDR is this: domestic violence incidents increase by about 10% on NFL game days. It usually occurs in the home, and it is usually against women. Why is that the NFL’s problem? Because they have the power to change the culture, and they continuously drop the ball. They say they do not stand for domestic or sexual violence, but they do not seem to bat an eye when they draft players with histories of these abuses, nor do they dole out any real consequences for players who are accused, arrested, or tried for these acts. Player themselves will declare their support for survivors of domestic and sexual violence through avenues such as My Cause, My Cleats but the NFL as an organization usually has very little to say on the issue.

There was a time when fans were promised that there would be serious reform in the way the NFL handles gender-based violence. Some fans may remember a 2014 letter from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell outlining those promises. Let’s rewind twelve years, and I’ll give you some context.

Ray Rice, 2014

Now, let’s be very clear that Ray Rice was not the first active- or former-NFL player to be accused, arrested, tried, and/or convicted of gender-based violence. This issue spans long before 2014. (You may remember a certain 1995 trial involving a certain retired NFL running back that speaks to this point.) However, the incident involving Ray Rice in 2014 is the first time that the NFL was forced to take a look at their personal conduct policies and “made changes” on how the league handles domestic and sexual violence.  The following is a very condensed reiteration of the timeline of events as told by an ESPN article from D’Arcy Maine.

On February 19^th, 2014, TMZ released video footage of Baltimore Ravens running back, Ray Rice, dragging his then fiancée’s limp body out of an elevator in Atlantic City. The altercation occurred on February 15^th, 2014. Court paperwork states that Rice’s fiancée was knocked unconscious by Rice while in the elevator.

At the time, Baltimore Ravens Head Coach, John Harbaugh, explicitly denied any plans to bench or release Rice based on the initial video even after Rice was indicted by a grand jury on a charge of third-degree aggravated assault. Teammates like wide receiver, Torrey Smith, also made public statements of their support for Rice. He was given an initial 2-game suspension in June 2014 by NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell– a punishment that many NFL fans felt was too soft. For those of you unfamiliar, that simply means he could not play and would not receive payment for a 2-game duration. In the NFL, every team plays once a week for eighteen weeks with a one-week break built into every team’s schedule.

Another video surfaces in September of 2014 showing footage from inside the elevator where Rice can be seen striking his fiancée before she falls and appears to hit her head on the elevator railing. Both the NFL and the Baltimore Ravens claimed that they had never seen the additional footage despite authorities stating they sent the footage to the necessary parties as early as four months prior (and a recording of an NFL employee confirming the receipt of this video). Ray Rice is released from the Ravens within hours and ultimately suspended indefinitely from the NFL.

Ray Rice was honored in 2024 by the Baltimore Ravens as a “Legend of the Game” for “the player that he was, and for the redemption he has worked towards…”.

I’ll let you form your own opinions on that.

The Response

In response to the backlash received for Rice’s light punishment, Roger Goodell apologized for the inadequate consequences and announced an overhaul of the NFL’s response to domestic violence and sexual assault incidents as well as immediate changes to the personal conduct policy in that letter I mentioned earlier. This letter lists the following changes:

1. Increased domestic violence and sexual assault education for players and non-players in the form of new programming specific to rookies, veteran players, and NFL personnel. (One of the ways this was implemented was the formation of the National Football League Players Association Commission on Violence Prevention—this will be important later.)
2. Thorough domestic violence and sexual assault training for all appropriate NFL staff to increase understanding and awareness of domestic violence and sexual assault risk factors.
3. Ensuring there are appropriately trained staff available through NFL-sanctioned wellness programs to handle issues involving domestic violence and sexual assault.
4. Expand education about domestic violence and sexual assault in college and youth programs
5. Increased public service in the fields of domestic violence and sexual assault.
6. Immediate changes to personal conduct policy: a 6-game suspension for any first-time offenses, banishment from the NFL for any second offenses. (Although, it is worth noting that this banishment can be appealed after 1 year.)

Now, let’s bring it back to 2026.

The Real Story

While I can’t speak to every point outlined in Roger Goodell’s letter, I can speak to the changes (or lack thereof…) I have noticed both as a Sexual Assault Counselor/Advocate and as an NFL fan. But before I get into any of that, here is the NFL’s official statement on domestic and sexual violence:

    The NFL is committed to addressing and preventing domestic violence and sexual assault. Through national and local partnerships, the NFL works year-round to provide resources to educate communities and support survivors. The NFL also works annually with Super Bowl host communities to celebrate the often-unnoticed efforts of the hundreds of employees and volunteers working behind the scenes at domestic violence shelters and sexual assault prevention organizations as well as funding and deploying human trafficking prevention initiatives. In addition, all 32 NFL clubs continue to work in their communities on efforts ranging from abuse intervention programs, crisis center fundraisers, high school healthy relationship assemblies, and local public service campaigns. (NFL)

Training for Players and Staff

As of writing this blog post, the NFL website provides access to their past and present Social Responsibility Curriculums. There are three topics covered (Healthy Relationships, Economic Abuse, and Technological Abuse) and each topic presentation is made up of various videos that total around 15-minutes. To be clear: there is a 45-minute presentation available to players that spans three training courses. The longest segment is 3 minutes and 32 seconds.

I have seen the entirety of this training, and, in my opinion, it leaves a lot to be desired considering the NFL leads all other major sports leagues in incidents of gender-based violence perpetrated by its athletes. I think that the topics discussed (Healthy Relationships, Economic Abuse, and Tech Abse) are incredibly important, but the discussions barely scratch the surface. Not to mention, the “what to do if you’re a survivor” section of every module is a few seconds long and never really talks about being a survivor in a way that is meaningful. As someone whose job it is to address this kind of violence, the training is not what I would hope to see for the league.

This 3-part training is the extent of what I could find information on in my search of the NFL’s website. I cannot speak to what supportive staff or resources are provided for players or non-players through internal NFL avenues.

More Serious Punishments for Gender-Based Violence

I have to say, this is the part that gets me really fired up. While the NFL has not been unresponsive in its punishments for employees (players and non-players), it certainly has not been to the degree promised. Additionally, consequences for star players like Tyreek Hill tend to be far lesser than less impactful players. And no one has actually been dismissed from the NFL for domestic or sexual violence despite many players qualifying for that second-incident automatic ban.

 In 2016, the NFL did place a bar on any prospective players convicted of domestic violence, sexual assault, or weapons charges. However, this ban seems to only cover attendance for NFL-sanctioned events and does not prevent an individual from being drafted and playing for any of the 32 clubs. I’ll admit, it’s feels a little contradictory.  

Probably the most well-known recent example is quarterback Deshaun Watson, who is currently starting for the Cleveland Browns. Watson was the subject of 27 civil lawsuits alleging sexual violence in massage therapy sessions during his time with the Houston Texans. Watson did face an 11-game suspension at the beginning of the 2022 season, a $5 million fine, and had to have a mental health and behavior evaluation to determine appropriate treatments. This is a far-cry from doing nothing, but it fails to uphold the strict stance on gender-based violence that Roger Goodell promised the NFL would take. Surely, if two incidents are enough for a lifetime ban, twenty-seven of them should be grounds for dismissal from the league. How many harmed women is too many in the NFL’s eyes?

We also started the 2026-27 season with three players on the Commissioner’s Exempt List. Two of which (Josh Jacobs, Green Bay Packers and Jonathon Cooper, Denver Broncos) are facing charges for gender-based violence.

                I recognize that the NFL may not be able to prevent every single incident of gender-based violence by its players. But they are doing far less than they could be doing. Individual teams have released players for these violent acts, and sometimes it does end their career. But letting someone quietly leave the league is not the strong stance against gender based violence we were promised. A formal ban says “This is not okay and will not be tolerated.” While a quiet dismissal says something more along the lines of “we don’t wanna catch that smoke, so please exit out the back door.” Sure, the latter may not be wrong per say, but the former is definitely clearer and sets a better precedent. Instead of increasing domestic violence rates by 10% every Sunday, the NFL could be a leading organization against gender-based violence. But here I am writing a blog post about their inadequacies on the subject.

Where Do We Go from Here?

Taking on a multi-billion-dollar non-profit probably sounds incredibly intimidating. Trust me, I get it. But the one thing working in our favor is that the NFL has a documented history of bending to fan power. The initial 2014 list of promises was, in fact, a response to backlash received from fans. The Superbowl was taken over by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation in 2019 as a result of fans asking for more representation and modern relevancy. So what does this tell us? That the NFL will act when fans apply pressure.

1. Call It Out: Silence allows the problem to fester. Talk about gender-based violence like it’s a new category of player stats; YES! Someone can be both a violent person and really good at football. That doesn’t mean the violence is irrelevant.
2. Make Your Money Talk: The NFL depends on money generated by fans. Did your hometown team sign an abuser to their starting line up? Refrain from purchasing any new team gear from official avenues. There is always a ton of small businesses selling team gear all over the internet, anyway. Shop small, and take a stand.
3. Support Teams Who Take a Stand: Are you REAL serious about your stance against gender-based violence in the NFL? I’ve got a perfect resource for you. Unsportsmanlikeconduct.org offers an easy-to-navigate guide that evaluates teams by tracking their drafting, signing, or retention of players with histories of gender-based violence. Each team is assigned a ranking based on these findings. It is the perfect place to find out which teams share your values in taking a stance against gender-based violence. Not to brag, but the Philadelphia Eagles General Manger, Howie Roseman stated on a podcast in 2025 that he will not even consider prospective athletes who have a history of domestic violence. Maybe some Kelly Green is in your future?

All in all, gender-based violence is an issue that affects everyone. No organization will be perfect in the way that it addresses important topics such as these, but we can hold these organizations accountable when they get it wrong and demand growth. While I am clearly very critical of where the NFL currently stands in its actions, I do remain hopeful that there is better accountability and survivor support in the NFL’s future. All we have to do is demand it.