Sunday, FOX's Terry Bradshaw railed on Greg Hardy, who has shown little remorse since his return from suspension for domestic assault charges, and ripped into Cowboys owner Jerry Jones as well for continuing to employ and enable Hardy.
Years before Terry Bradshaw ripped Greg Hardy, he called for the Steelers to dump Ben Roethlisberger
Terry Bradshaw gives his heartfelt viewpoint on Greg Hardy's domestic abuse case. https://t.co/LfMelAXzmj
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) October 11, 2015 It is a righteous tirade from a high-profile host on a huge NFL pregame show -- a much-needed prominent voice to broadcast the indignation of so many NFL fans tired of players like Hardy getting a relative free pass after horrid transgressions. In the midst of affirmation and thankfulness for Bradshaw's words, one strange response keeps popping up, often from Cowboys fans who feel a vendetta or double standard has been revealed: Why didn't Bradshaw have the same response when Ben Roethlisberger, a Steeler legend like Bradshaw, was accused of sexual assault and rape?
He did.
That is Bradshaw in 2010, after Roethlisberger’s second sexual violence incident -- a rape accusation in Georgia for which the quarterback received a six-game suspension that was later reduced to four games. Bradshaw addressed the following to Roethlisberger at the time:
"I've told everyone I wasn't happy when the commissioner reduced your suspension from six games to four games. I wouldn't have done that. I don't know that you've proven to the NFL that you're on the right path, but I hope so. But for years you acted recklessly, you hung out in college bars, you disrespected women. The Steelers got rid of Super Bowl hero Santonio Holmes for failing a substance abuse test, but they should have dumped you, because what you did, in my eyes, was a lot worse."
When prodded with some dismay, Bradshaw clarified:
“If I had owned the Steelers, hear me loud and clear, he would not be a Steeler. I would’ve gotten rid of him. What he did, in my eyes, is absolutely unacceptable.”
Bradshaw, in fact, has been criticizing Roethlisberger for all sorts of things big and small since he became a Steeler -- this moment is the most serious of many.
So to answer a lot of questions: When Roethlisberger was accused of sexual violence, Terry Bradshaw stood loudly on the same side he now occupies regarding Hardy: The right one. You can put aside this accusation of a double standard for one of the few people around the NFL using his pulpit to send a message the league needs to hear. The takeaway here should be how bleak it is that, years later, Bradshaw still has to upbraid organizations for keeping men like this around.
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