TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Domestic violence and sports...those who say the current NFL problem started with the Ravens' Ray Rice, viciously attacking his then fiance, now wife in a hotel elevator are wrong. That incident was caught on tape and in the new age of social media, it's taken on a life of itself, but it's been a growing problem for years.
The 49ers Ray MacDonald is under investigation for hitting his girlfriend.
The Panthers' Greg Hardy, already convicted of domestic violence against his girlfriend, Wednesday was on the exempt/commissioner's exception list which removes him from all football activities with Carolina, but he still is paid by the team.
When Ron Rivera, head coach of the Carolina Panthers was asked, 'Did you get it right the first time' his response was 'I don't know'.
"I don't know," said Rivera. "What is right? We do the best we can though, because again, we all make mistakes and try to correct them going forward. We try to make sure we understand this is an issue that has to be correct, and we have to get this issue correct. You've got to do the right things. We're trying to do the right things."
If you look at recent incidents, how some elite athletes view women in society is alarming. And it's not limited to the professional ranks. Tuesday, Florida State quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston, reportedly stood on a table on campus and uttered profanities against women.
Head Coach Jimbo Fisher addressed the incident at his weekly teleconference call Wednesday morning.
Leagues and teams are now scrambling to figure out just how to address the seemingly growing problem of domestic violence and disrespect of women.
