As you may or may not know by now, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has been suspended by the NFL for six games to start the season. He was suspended because of not one but two accusations within the past year of sexually assaulting young women. He also put himself in danger a few years ago when he crashed his motorcycle while without wearing a helmet which cost the Steelers dearly in trying to defend their fifth Super Bowl title.
What are my thoughts? I think the suspension was a bit too harsh, considering that Mike Vick only got two games after coming out of jail for animal abuse, and other folks have gotten lesser suspensions for crimes they were actually charged for. Roethlisberger has never actually been charged with anything. I think it does send a message to the rest of the league and it's players though. The league is saying that they will not tolerate anything, and you must not get into any trouble with the law of any kind. This suspension is detrimental to the Steelers hopes of returning to the playoffs, as I think they will go no better than 3-3 while Roethlisberger is on this suspension.
The Steelers also should think about trading Roethlisberger to a team like the Raiders who would be thrilled to get a player of his talent. Plus, the Raiders are the castoffs of the league anyway. People go there because no other team will and Al Davis doesn't really care.
Overall, I think it was harsh, but it sent a big message to Roethlisberger and the league as a whole.
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