Daily Norseman
On 17 July, two different NFL players found themselves in two different courtrooms to enter guilty pleas for transgressions they had committed during the 2024 offseason.
In California, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison reached a plea deal stemming from his incident near LAX in July of 2024 where he was found intoxicated, asleep behind the wheel of his vehicle blocking a lane of traffic. He agreed to plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges, the result of which was 12 months probation, a $390 fine, and having to take some online courses.
On 5 August, the NFL informed the Vikings that Addison would be suspended for the first three games of the 2025 NFL regular season, meaning that he will miss a Monday Night Football matchup against the Chicago Bears, a Sunday Night Football matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, and what should be a high-profile game at U.S. Bank Stadium against the Cincinnati Bengals.
In Texas. . .again, also on 17 July. . .Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice was also pleading guilty. In March of 2024, Rice was racing another driver on the North Central Expressway in Dallas at speeds approaching 120 miles/hour, causing a multi-car accident where multiple people were injured. Rice and the person he was racing then fled the scene of the accident and were arrested later on. Rice agreed to plead guilty to two felonies and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five years probation.
Rice’s disciplinary hearing is on 30 September, which means that he will be available for the first four games of Kansas City’s season. That stretch includes a game against the Los Angeles Chargers in Brazil, a Super Bowl rematch with the Philadelphia Eagles, a Sunday Night Football game against the New York Giants, and another high-profile matchup against the Baltimore Ravens.
Now, perhaps my tinfoil hat is strapped on a little tighter than it should be, but it would appear that there’s a slight difference in the way these two cases are being handled by the NFL.
There is no reason for Rice to be available to the Chiefs for the first four weeks of the season. There is no reason for the league to not have already passed down some sort of discipline for Rice already. And if the National Football League was looking to quiet the perception that some teams in the league get treated differently than other teams, then this is definitely the wrong way to go about it.
Yes, Rice’s case might be more complex because of everything that’s involved and whatever else. Fine. Whatever. If you want to look at past precedent when it comes to dealing with player discipline when things are uncertain, we need look no further than another example involving the Vikings.
Following the 2014 regular season opener, Adrian Peterson faced accusations of child abuse stemming from an incident involving one of his children. The team deactivated Peterson for their Week 2 game and planned on reinstating him for...
