It is a tale as old as time. An athlete will play like a champion on the field/court/ rink and will have the sports world buzzing. Out of the blue, they are hit with an allegation of a serious crime.
What happens next is the most crucial part. Sometimes the athlete is blacklisted from the sport, like Ray Rice in the NFL or Pete Rose in the MLB. However, sometimes the athletes are welcomed back with open arms, like Adrian Peterson in the NFL or Kobe Bryant in the NBA.
Let’s start with the case of Adrian Peterson. Peterson was a well-known running back for the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL. He was regarded as one of the best, most talented running backs in the entire league. That all changed on September 12th, 2014 when it came out that Peterson had beaten his four-year-old child multiple times with a tree branch.
Peterson was immediately suspended by the NFL for the rest of the season. This story came out only a few days after fellow NFL running back Ray Rice was suspended indefinitely for domestic abuse, so the NFL world was rocked. Rice never played another down of football again, but Peterson came back one year later and continues to play to this day.
It seems that Peterson still has not learned from his mistakes, because in a 2018 interview with Bleacher Report, Peterson admitted that he still hits his children with a belt and a tree branch.
Peterson tried to excuse his behavior by saying that his children still loved him, but that does not make his actions any less despicable. Sadly, this time around, the NFL world did not really pay attention to the story.
The next story involves Kobe Bryant of the NBA. Before I get into this, I feel that a content warning is necessary for anybody who does not feel comfortable with the topic of rape.
In 2003, Kobe Bryant was riding high on top of the NBA. He was fresh off of three straight NBA Championships and had just been eliminated in the conference finals in a very close series. Right before the 2003-2004 season began, Bryant was arrested for sexual assault. However, Bryant continued to play while on trial and even lead his Los Angeles Lakers to another NBA Finals appearance.
Bryant’s failure on the court was probably on the back of his mind as his trial continued to ramp up. In a trial marred by controversy, the defense ultimately used attacks on the victim’s character and morals to get the judge to drop the charges against Bryant. Bryant regained all the sponsorships he lost during the trial and even signed a seven year, $136 million contract with the Lakers. Bryant went on to play 14 more years in the NBA before retiring in 2016.
In conclusion, it is very important not to let bad behavior slide because of how talented an athlete is.
We need to hold these athletes accountable for their actions, whether it be at the very top like the NFL or NBA to even colleges, like Saint Xavier. Without it, we are excusing horrible people for their horrible actions.
Chris Leonchik
Sports Editor
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