I suppose I have mixed feelings on this. I feel both Ray Rice and his wife behaved irresponsibly that night and I'm sure both regret what happened. However with great power comes great responsibility, and considering how much more physical power men have compared to women, especially an elite athlete like Rice, they should show great restraint in using it. As a former athlete (although nowhere near his level) and a big strong guy myself, I try to show restraint not only to women but also to weaker men and men who don't know as much about martial arts as I do.

I feel like the NFL fucked this whole thing up across the board and it's coming back to bite them. They gave him too light a sentence to begin with and now they're overcompensating for both the initial backlash to the light punishment as well as the avalanche that happened when the video footage from inside of the elevator that showed his left hook counter connect to her chin and cause her not only to immediately lose consciousness, but her head also awkwardly landed on the rail in the elevator which likely made her injuries worse, possibly causing a concussion which can cause complications, especially if she becomes concussed once again. Perhaps most troubling about the video was the callous disregard he showed for her safety and concern for her welfare.

I feel like ultimately since she has made an informed decision to stay with him despite at least one instance of domestic violence, and that she and her daughter are financially dependent on him, it is in all of their best interest that he be allowed to earn a living moving forward. So he should be allowed to go back to his career as an NFL player either after his original 2 game suspension is over, or at the very most, after 6 games which would be the most (and also the minimum) given for a first time offender like him under the NFL's recently reviewed domestic violence policy. I don't really see who it would help if Rice's career is ended at age 27 and he ends up broke and his wife and kids end up on government assistance. People make mistakes and deserve second chances.