Oh, I hear ya because we can assume he did something, but who really though it was two left hooks, one of which knocked her into a metal rail and knocked her out?
I hope I don't sound like I'm defending Rice or the NFL, but I'm glad they didn't jump the gun and fire him and suspend him for a year based on the aftermath.
Why? Well, what if they were fighting and while getting her off of him, he pushed her back and she slipped and fell and hit her head by accident? Then, the NFL would have probably been taken to task for over-punishment.
I think it hard for the NFL to balance punishment with the history of stupid players and the public demanding people's heads. In a sense, I'd hate to be in Goodell's shoes.
Because, had that actually happened, the story would have been "we were in an altercation and I pushed her, she hit her head, and you can see me dragging her to help."
Plus, as one of my early posts stated, even suggesting that a women can attack and man and he is allowed to retaliate has been likened to suggesting a women's clothing is responsible for her rape. People don't understand that in some scenarios, the aggressor can be the women. Now, it is clear in this case, that wasn't the issue. I could have understood if his girlfriend had actually attacked him and he simply overreacted and on reflex hit her.
The problem with the suspension is all sources are saying the NFL had access to all the tapes, not just the outside one. TMZ was able to obtain them, why couldn't the NFL? I am going to go out on a limb and say they are more powerful of an organization than TMZ...
Goodell is just self serving in this case. It became bad publicity, so he reacted and banned Ray Rice. Had this video never surfaced on TV, nobody would give a shit. And that is the real problem. The NFL doesn't care about player conduct as much as it cares about public opinion and harming their brand. They are willing to let tons things go, so long as the public isn't made aware.
Also, I have to agree with the Raven's player who is saying the news networks shouldn't have this video on repeat. After I watched it online, I saw it on TV quite a few times. I can't imagine that is easy for the victim to watch.