NFL is wrong, Adrian Peterson should take the field

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Perception is a very powerful thing.

NFL fans’ perception of the league this year has been nothing short of horrible.

The Ray Rice saga, the league’s domestic abuse problem, and the Adrian Peterson situation have led to knee-jerk reactions meant to appease the general public. The league doesn’t care about what’s right; they care about what looks right.

So it wasn’t surprising that Tuesday morning, the league informed Peterson, the NFL, and the NFL Players Association, the league decided to suspend him for “at least” the remainder of the season without pay. The league stated:

In a letter to Peterson, Commissioner Roger Goodell said, “The timing of your potential reinstatement will be based on the results of the counseling and treatment program set forth in this decision. Under this two-step approach, the precise length of the suspension will depend on your actions.”

Peterson will almost surely appeal the decision.

The way Peterson disciplined his child was wrong. Depending on your feelings on child discipline, Peterson — at best — took things to far, and at worst committed a disgusting and deplorable act to a defenseless child.

And even with all that he’s done, Peterson needs to be back on an NFL football field. Immediately.

The NFL Players Association issued the following statement shortly after news broke of Peterson’s suspension:

When the Peterson news first broke, the NFL had no idea how to handle it. Rather than making a rationed decision, they essentially punted, making Peterson go away for nine games to let the media storm die down.

Peterson had his day in court. He struck a plea deal and pled no contest to a misdemeanor. You can disagree with that ruling. You can think Peterson is a horrible person. You can refuse to root for Peterson out of principal; turn the television off when he’s playing.

But Peterson was a first-time offender who made a deal and was found guilty of a lesser charge — a legal strategy employed by thousands of Americans everyday. He will pay his fine, serve his probation, and hopefully learn from his mistake. That mistake shouldn’t take away his livelihood.

The NFL isn’t the justice system. Its strategy of picking and choosing punishments is what led to the Rice fiasco. It collectively bargained a set of rules with the NFL Players Association and is allegedly trying to violate those terms so it can make an example out of Peterson. So it can change public perception.

On Friday, the NFL scheduled a hearing with Peterson and outside sources to discuss his case. This is a process that wasn’t agreed upon in the current collective bargaining agreement. Regardless of what you think of Peterson, it isn’t an excuse for the NFL to act illegally to try to keep him unemployed.

Peterson issued a statement on Sunday that in part read:

After consulting with the union, I told the NFL that I will attend the standard meeting with the commissioner prior to possible imposition of discipline, as has been the long-term practice under the CBA, but I wouldn’t participate in a newly created and non-collectively bargained pre-discipline ‘hearing’ that would include outside people I don’t know and who would have roles in the process that the NFL wouldn’t disclose.

That standard meeting took place Monday, where Peterson, the NFL and arbitrator took part in an appeals meeting. Following the short conference call, the NFL is expected to discipline Peterson, with some expecting him to get a six-game suspension under the league’s updated personal conduct policy. Peterson is arguing that the nine-game suspension should count as time served — though he was paid during that time.

He’s right, it should. He got paid to go away because the NFL didn’t know what to do and it stalled. It cared more about what the public would think then how to correctly handle the situation. It didn’t want any more negative headlines and made the hasty decision to get Peterson out quickly.

The NFL needs to stop worrying about positive public relations and allow Peterson the opportunity to play football again. Peterson is no “victim”— that unwanted label goes to his son that took the beating.

But he is being unfairly punished in this instance, and it could end up setting a bad precedent for other players in the future.

The terrible perception the league has gotten this year is a direct result of its history of having too much power and the stark inconsistency its shown in the way it discipline its players. It may think that making Peterson go away will lead to good will.

Ultimately, it’ll just further strengthen the perception that the NFL has no idea what it’s doing when it comes to player discipline.

Follow Stefen Lovelace on Twitter @StefenLovelace.