The NFL is not new to high-profile stars being the center of various criminal activity, but how are their punishments, or lack of them, decided? It seems that NFL players are always getting in trouble, but nothing usually comes of it.
Significant changes were introduced post-2014, but there remains a struggle with accountability and the implementation of these changes. It still feels that teams care more about the business of football than the crimes their players are committing and the people they affect.
In 2014, Ray Rice, a running back for the Baltimore Ravens, was arrested on aggravated assault charges against his fiancée in an Atlantic City hotel elevator. Initially, Commissioner Roger Goodell met with Rice and gave him a two-game suspension. Comparatively, players at the time would receive much longer suspensions for drug and steroid usage. TMZ later released the elevator footage showing Rice punching his fiancée unconscious, sparking a national outcry. Shortly after the video’s release, the NFL issued an indefinite suspension, and the Ravens cut Rice from their squad. Rice appealed and won; however, no teams picked him up as a free agent. Following this incident, the NFL entirely rewrote its Personal Conduct Policy.
The NFL lessened its focus on legal convictions and set up its own independent investigation team made up of former FBI agents and experts. If that team finds “sufficient credible evidence”, the league now has the right to punish players even if they have not been charged in court. The league also instituted a mandatory 6-game suspension minimum without pay.
Cases involving a weapon, children, pregnant women, and repeated violations give the league permission to extend the suspension. Rather than the commissioner deciding the penalty, an independent, former judge reviews the facts and recommends a penalty. If a player is indicted or arrested, they are moved to the commissioner’s Exempt List. This is essentially paid leave until the investigations play out a bit more. The most important shift is that the NFL now views these issues as not only the players’, but also as the peoples they affect—victims, families, and children. There are teams in place to assist and provide relief appropriately.
Finally, the league requires anyone involved with the team, from staff to players to cheerleaders, to participate in an annual training on healthy relationships and domestic violence prevention. These are all steps the league has taken following the Rice case, but how good a job is it doing at implementing these changes?
Quarterback Deshaun Watson received an 11-game suspension and a $5 million fine following 27 civil lawsuits against him in 2022 for various sexual misconduct and assault actions, mainly revolving around massage parlors in the Houston area. Watson settled most of the lawsuits, with the rest being dismissed. Two Texas grand juries refused to indict him, yet the league still instituted a suspension beyond the 6-game minimum.
Similar to Watson, Ravens’ kicker Justin Tucker was suspended in 2025 for 10 games after sexual misconduct allegations from 16 massage therapists. Tucker has not yet gone to court and continues to deny the claims. Neither player ever received an official legal charge, yet both received bans as a result of the newer independent investigations. In both cases, the team found evidence supporting the women’s claims and issued a penalty accordingly. These players were suspended quickly after allegations about them arose; however, other players with allegations continue to play freely. Watson was traded to the Cleveland Browns and signed a 5-year, $230 million contract. Tucker did not sign with a new team following his allegations.
One notable player with a significant record of misconduct is former Dolphins and Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who has faced multiple allegations, none of which resulted in suspension. In 2019, the league did not issue a suspension because the investigation lacked conclusive evidence. In 2025, the NFL began a new investigation into a domestic violence claim, which is ongoing.
Despite his previous record, Hill remains active, now a free agent after being released by the Dolphins due to an injury. Another player who is playing freely as long as the investigation is ongoing is Stefon Diggs, another star wide receiver. Again, Diggs also has a past of domestic violence claims, yet none have ended in a suspension so far. In December of 2025, Diggs was accused of strangulation involving a private chef. Despite this claim, he was free to play in the Super Bowl because his arraignment was pushed to March. The NFL states that it is waiting for the legal proceedings to conclude before issuing its own punishment, which seems different from that of Watson and Tucker. Diggs was later released by the Patriots in March 2026, following the Super Bowl and prior to his arraignment.
One issue the NFL must still contend with is the teams’ responses and motivations behind them. Tucker was a Ravens legend and was often considered the greatest kicker of all time until 2024, when his performance declined massively. The team saw the claims as the final straw that would lead to him being cut. Watson, despite all of the claims, was never cut as a result of his massive contract and was instead held out to and traded away for a massive haul. Hill was widely regarded as one of the league’s best receivers at the time of his allegations, leading to them being overlooked again as a potential source of profit. Hill was also traded for a massive draft-pick haul and later cut by the Dolphins for salary-cap reasons, not disciplinary ones. Finally, Diggs is also one of the best receivers of the last decade, and his team’s playoff success meant that they needed him on the field. Once they no longer needed him after the Super Bowl, they dropped him for salary cap purposes. The claims are pushed aside in the name of success and the belief that people will overlook the issue if the team wins. Teams care only about cases when the player is no longer useful, and assets are prioritized over accountability.
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