The Dallas Cowboys offseason has not been an easy one. America's Team has made national headlines a lot, and no, not in a good way. Some Cowboys players have gotten themselves in trouble, and some of them have already been suspended by the NFL.
Cowboys Nation is one loyal group of fans. I respect that so much. As a member of Cowboys Nation myself, I love that so much.
And because of that, because of that love for our team, because of that fandom for the Star, I understand when fans claim that the NFL suspending Cowboys players is nothing but a witch hunt against our team.
However, that thought is 100% wrong.
For some reason, these topics are always hot and polemical. Some people slander the player for his actions, some claim it's not a big deal. Some point fingers at the coaches, and some say coaches are not to blame for a player's behavior.
Before we continue, let's take a look at the Cowboys that have run into trouble this offseason.
- David Irving, the Cowboys most promising DE, received a four-game suspension after using PEDs.
- Nolan Carroll was arrested on a DWI charge. He hasn't received a suspension yet, but is likely to at some point. He will probably miss the first two games of the season.
- Damien Wilson was arrested on assault charges, and is in serious trouble.
- Ezekiel Elliott is still under investigation for a domestic violence accusation. Also, there are the St. Patrick's Day and Clutch Bar incidents.
All of these suspensions and rumors of suspensions, for some reason, have made a large group of Cowboys Nation believe that the NFL is against us… That Roger Goodell is against the Dallas Cowboys.
But, why would we think that?
Irving broke a crystal-clear rule. The league literally has a list of substances a player can't consume and he did. Carroll and Wilson were arrested, why shouldn't the NFL suspend them? This happens all the time, to all the teams in the NFL.
The fact that the Cowboys have been involved in these unfortunate situations more than other teams is a different thing. It just happens.
Finally, there's Ezekiel Elliott's situation. This is by far the most important one of all, and the one that has generated most of this discussion among Cowboys fans. The NFL has dragged his domestic violence investigation for so much time, it feels wrong.
But that wouldn't be the first time the NFL pushes an investigation. Deflategate lasted for an eternity and ended up with Tom Brady being suspended for something that was “more probable than not.” And they were talking about deflated balls, not domestic violence.
To be clear, I do think the way the NFL handles most of these issues is wrong and incoherent. But I don't think that they target a team and then try to pin something on its players.
If we're talking theories though, I'm picking another one. I find it more believable that the NFL is trying to scare Zeke, as Mike Fisher (@fishsports) suggested.
What if 'NFL vs #EzekielElliott ' isn't at all about league being AGAINST #Cowboys Star … but rather a Scared Straight warning? pic.twitter.com/I7PK1wTe3u
— fishsports (@fishsports) July 14, 2017
He also suggested this…
Which leads to ?: if you're about to suspend a player, why r u 1st 'making him aware of charges'? #KangarooCourt https://t.co/kQfwfRynZs
— fishsports (@fishsports) July 14, 2017
What if the NFL is not trying to suspend Elliott?
What if they actually are trying to scare him, for his own good? When the St. Patrick's Day incident occurred, the NFL wouldn't have had a hard time finding evidence to suspend him for his poor behavior. There was a video. Would've been an easy job to suspend him. So why didn't they?
For all I know, the theory I'm sharing with you could be absolutely wrong. But so is saying the Cowboys are being hunted by the NFL.
As much as we love our Cowboys, we have to accept that.
I think it's high time we hold the players accountable for their mistakes. Not the coaches, not the commissioner, but the players themselves.
As for now, all we can do is wait and see what happens. Maybe Ezekiel Elliott is suspended for two, four or more games. Maybe he isn't suspended at all.
How do you feel about the Cowboys suspensions this offseason?
Let us know in the comments below, or tweet me @PepoR99 and let's talk football! If you like football and are looking for a Dallas Cowboys show in Spanish, don't miss my weekly live show Primero Cowboys!
