Thursday, March 18, 2010
Questioning Roethlisberger's Decisions
While the police have not officially charged Roethlisberger with assault, they are said to be interviewing him over the next couple of days and plan to collect DNA as part of the investigation.
Roethlisberger is no stranger to this type of accusation, as he is currently dealing with a lawsuit brought on by another woman, who claims he raped her at a resort in Lake Tahoe back in 2008.
In preparation, Roethlisberger has not wasted any time defending himself. He adamantly denies the accusations and hired a high-powered lawyer from Atlanta, Ed Garland, as his attorney. Garland is also familiar with high-profile cases of this nature, having represented both rapper T. I. on gun charges and the Baltimore Raven’s Ray Lewis on a murder charge.
Regardless of what comes of these alleged crimes, his recent actions beg the question of why he is continually putting himself at risk. As the face of a franchise, it is not smart, nor responsible, for a man dealing with his issues to be partying late into the night with college students.
Of course he is innocent until proven guilty, but beyond his extraordinary career on the field, he has certainly battled his share of problems off of it. A motorcycle accident in 2006 almost killed him and forced him to have serious cosmetic surgery on his face because he was not wearing a helmet – a request Coach Bill Cowher made clear. He did not even have a valid motorcycle license for Pennsylvania at the time. Roethlisberger also has a reputation for skipping out on bills in the Pittsburgh area, and the Internet is swirling with pictures of him drinking.
All of these actions lead to one conclusion: he should accept the responsibility of being a star NFL quarterback. If that means growing up, going out responsibly, and keeping his hands to himself, then so be it. Even if the charges are dismissed, Roethlisberger needs to take his position seriously in order to put these charges behind him and direct media attention to his accomplishments on the field instead of his bad decisions off it. He is the face of a Superbowl-caliber team, whether he wants to be or not, and needs to understand the responsibilities that come with that, and respect those boundaries. The decision-making that has been shown, regardless of the level of truth in the allegations, is something that is of a concern for him in the years to come.
-Mia SpadoniTweet
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