The NFL continues to remain conspicuously quiet about the damning domestic violence allegations against Josh Brown.
A recent report by Ralph Vacciano of SNY, which gleans from 165 pages of police documents, details disturbing allegations that show the NFL not only knew about Brown’s alleged domestic violence against his ex-wife, Molly, but also intervened to help prevent further damage.
In particular as it relates to the NFL’s involvement in this case, Molly says she took a trip to Hawaii last January, courtesy of Brown. At this point, she and Brown were in the middle of a divorce.
While in Hawaii for the Pro Bowl, Brown allegedly made “cutting comments” towards her and got so drunk one night that he allegedly started pounding on her door so loud that NFL security had to come and remove him.
“She also alleged that the NFL eventually put her and her kids up in a different hotel ‘where Josh would not know where they were,’ the police report said.”
There is a lot more junk to sort through in Vacciano’s report, including allegations that New York Giants teammates knew of the abuse and did nothing about it. Brown also reportedly bashed Molly’s head and arm into a mirror in their bedroom in 2014 — an incident their daughter, Georgia, witnessed.
This is some seriously disturbing stuff.
The glaring issue here is that the NFL reportedly not only knew about the abuse but actually intervened to stop it. Yet to this day, the NFL has maintained there was not enough evidence to support implementing its mandatory six-game ban for first-time domestic violence.
NFL proudly unveiled a new policy in December 2014 including a 6 game suspension for first DV offense. It has yet to be applied. #JoshBrown
— Andrew Brandt (@AndrewBrandt) October 20, 2016
Brown himself has admitted to being “a sex-addicted ‘deviant’ who viewed himself as ‘God’ and his wife as ‘my slave,’ according to entries in his own journals, emails to his wife, and a letter he wrote to friends, which were obtained by SNY.”
Yet to this point, the kicker has received nothing but a relative slap on the wrist in the form of a one-game suspension to open the 2016 NFL season.
Meanwhile, Greg Hardy has (thankfully) been blacklisted from the league after similarly damaging reports of domestic abuse against his ex-girlfriend. Ray Rice can’t get a job, either, despite the fact that he’s worked hard to not only repent but has been a consistent advocate against domestic violence.
A lot about this Josh Brown story smells rotten. The stench is overwhelming.
The NFL cannot continue to stay silent on this issue.
Yet here we are. The league doesn’t have anything to say, and the silence is deafening.