FanPost

Cardinals' Washington Not In Boat Alone on Domestic Violence Charges



Look, it's never right to hit a woman. And if you're from my generation that would be NEVER. Otherwise, you would face the wrath of the girl's brother, father or husband. In other words, you'd be hit twice as hard and with such intention that it would never happen again.

Kinda like a inside linebacker sniffing out a delayed-draw dump to a running back just past the line of scrimmage that's read and the LB gives a crushing blow with the message being sent via a Tom Petty song, "Don't Come Around Here No More".

And I hate to flippantly compare the two scenarios because one is a real lifetime situation while the other is a game. But... it does happen and it's happened in the Cardinals Arizona history and the Valley sports scene in general with mixed results. In the NFL at least, these are highly strung athletes that are highly competitive and have been rumored to take mood-altering drugs.

Remember former Cards running back Micheal Pittman being arrested twice in 2001 for threatening his former wife - in one month? Then, after being released by the team and signing with Tampa, going to jail for ramming his vehicle into his former wife, son and babysitter?

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/bucs/2003-06-01-pittman_x.htm

Or newly acquired WR coach and former RB Marcel Shipp almost in the same situation?

http://www.arizonasportsfans.com/vb/f4/marcel-shipp-will-not-face-domestic-violence-charges-28396.html

Or even the most revered all around good guy Larry Fitzgerald with his spat with the mother of his child:

http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2009/01/larry_fitzgeralds_alleged_dome.php

And don't forget Jason Kidd of the Suns and Bobby Chacon of the DBacks Bobby Chouinard, off the top of my head.

Point is, humans have failures and no matter how much above the general public we love to put our sport stars - they are basically the same - with the same issues and fears as us, just more financed and publicized. It doesn't make it less appalling, yet maybe more of a realization that these guys are human beings with real frailties, not robots or video game players that are above emotional realities. And just as they are not beyond reproach in legal issues they are also allowed due process in the same system, where believe it or not, they are innocent until PROVEN guilty - see the hubbub with the Sacramento Taco Bell/ Joey Porter arrest a few years ago when he was exonerated.

All I know, is if I hit a woman, not only would I be in trouble with her partner, my mom would be chasing me down an alley with a piece of the backyard fence she had just ripped out of the backyard. (Just incidental as far as memory goes, hasn't happened.)

<em>This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Revenge of the Birds' (ROTB) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of ROTB's editors.</em>