NFL Mayhem

As I was watching the NFL game between the Cleveland Browns and the Pittsburgh Stealers, a fight broke out. Minor skirmishes during an NFL game are fairly common, but this was something altogether different. A defensive lineman from Cleveland ripped the helmet off of the Pittsburgh quarterback and hit him with it in the head and shoulder area.

There was an immediate outing on the internet. Many current and former NFL players were calling for a season ending ban. To me, that’s simply not enough,

In this case, what took place was an aggravated battery. The helmet, in this case, was a weapon. Under Louisiana Law, the offender would have been facing a prison sentence of up to 10 years.

If the victim had been severely injured, it would have been an aggravated second-degree battery. The offender could have received a prison sentence of up to 15 years.

Like so many other people, I love to watch football. However, what I saw last night was a crime and it should be punished as a criminal offense.