Once again, the tough talk of NFL teams about what they will and will not tolerate has proven to be conditional.
The latest is in New York, where Giants kicker Josh Brown was suspended one game for a domestic violence arrest involving his ex-wife, which is the kind of thing new Giants coach Ben McAdoo said he wouldn’t tolerate when he took the job this offseason.
“We support the league office in their decision and their stance on personal conduct,” McAdoo said Thursday, via Seth Walder of the New York Daily News. “I do support Josh as a man, a father, and a player. We treat these situations on a case-by-case basis.”
Asked what made this case one he could tolerate, McAdoo replied: “That’s something that’s private and I’m not willing to discuss publicly.”
Of course, part of the reason the Giants will tolerate it is Brown has proven good at kicking footballs. But McAdoo also tried to put some space between himself and the decision to sign Brown to a two-year, $4 million contract this offseason (which was signed after they were aware of the arrest).
“That’s a better question for Jerry [Reese, the Giants General Manager],” McAdoo said.
Asked if the team conducted its own investigation, McAdoo replied: “I stay in my lane. I don’t have any information on that.”
Brown’s suspension comes from an incident involving his ex-wife, who told police about 20 incidents of violence between the veteran kicker and her and her teenage son. But those weren’t even the only allegations.
The Daily News also dug up a pair of arrests from his college days, one a misdemeanor assault for punching a guy who was talking to his girlfriend, tossing her aside when she tried to intervene. For that, he was suspended from Nebraska’s 2001 opener. He was also arrested for driving under the influence in college.
But asked about the recent charges, McAdoo said it didn’t change the way he viewed the issue.
“That doesn’t change my stance. My stance stays the same,” McAdoo said. “I’m a father, I’m a husband, and my stance on personal conduct stays the way it is. Stays consistent, and it stays strong. But I think it’s important for an organization and the locker room to take it on a case by case basis.”
And apparently, in this case, they’ve chosen to believe in the player.