Of course what Quinn is not addressing in comparing the league presently to that of 1960 is the commercial polarization of sports in general due to TV broadcasting. It’s not just a game anymore. It’s sports entertainment at the highest level.
Back in that era not all games were broadcast and NFL players had basically just a part time job during the season. There’s billions of dollars of revenue at stake now with the networks , their sponsors and the owners in which the players directly benefit in some cases hundreds of millions.
The NFL image is at the forefront for all of these decisions from the league office which the Commissioner is in place to protect the Shield on behalf of the owners interest.
Thursday nights incident was unfortunate especially at a point in the final seconds when the games result wasn’t in the balance. As my wife and I were watching it unfold and reviewing replay she said he shouldn’t ever be allowed to play again which is a perspective from its viewers the league must consider. I responded by saying he’d probably be suspended the rest of the season and possibly indefinitely.
I believe at some point he’ll be reinstated. After all the league reinstated a Felon who was convicted for killing dogs. And we’ve had much worse incidents from players involving domestic violence.
But this is a great example like in the Rice case where video is so powerful and damaging. It’s simply not something that can be swept under the rug or stashed in a closet. It’s out there for everyone to witness and stew over . And why it’s so damaging to the image of the league and such drastic measures must be taken.
