Ray Rice was the subject of one of the NFL’s biggest controversies of the mid-2010s. Now, over a decade later, a former teammate of his has opened up on the experience of covering it.
On Friday, former Pro Bowl linebacker-turned-analyst Bart Scott was a guest on The Pivot Podcast. One of the topics he discussed was covering Rice’s domestic violence case in 2014, his first year since being promoted to a full-time role at CBS.
Thanks for the submission!
According to Scott, the network wanted him to disparage Rice, which it would turn into viral clips. He greatly disliked the ploy:
•
“I felt like they thought they were going to use me like a puppet, and I reversed, Uno, draw-two, f*** you. … They wanted me to throw Ray underneath the bus and step on him and build it so they could have these big clips. And I refused.”
Looking to predict NFL playoff Scenarios? Try our NFL Playoff Predictor for real-time simulations and stay ahead of the game!
He continued:
“Because I’m a believer that no man should be judged by his worst moment, right? … And I knew that Ray Rice was a good person that had a bad moment, which we all can do … we shouldn’t be defined by that. And I hated that the industry tried to pit me against him and try to use me for clickbait.”
ALSO READ: What did Ray Rice do? Why Ravens legend’s career ended early over disturbing case
ALSO READ: WATCH: Ray Rice seen getting swarmed by kids at Ravens training camp alongside Marshawn Lynch
Stephen A. Smith got candid on being suspended for Ray Rice comments
Speaking of sportscasters, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith had this to say regarding Ray Rice’s situation on an episode of First Take in 2014:
“Domestic violence, or whatever the case may be, with men putting their hands on women, is obviously a very real issue in our society. … But at the same time, we also have to make sure that we learn as much as we can about elements of provocation.”
The network perceived those comments as “victim-blaming” and suspended him for a week. And speaking on Stephanie McMahon’s podcast “What’s Your Story?” in August, he opened up about what he felt amid that:
“My attitude is, if you’re around a no-good b****** who would put his hands on a woman, do what you can to get out of that situation until help arrives. And that’s how I meant it to come across. It did not come across that way. … It was a devastating blow because I know my name has no business ever being associated with domestic violence.”
Rice’s case ended with him settling with the NFL in January 2015. In 2018, he revealed in a CBS interview that he was done with football.
Edited by Andre Castillo