Inexcusable

Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice has made a terrible mistake. On February 15th Rice knocked his (then) fiance Janay Palmer unconscious in an Atlantic City elevator. Hotel cameras caught Rice carrying her unconscious body out of the elevator. Palmer and Rice have been together since high school, and it seems this incident haven't kept them from being together. They said "I do" to each other not long after. That is one forgiving woman! This incident has been brought back up to the surface this month after Rice received his two game suspension that will take place at the beginning of this upcoming season. Today he apologized again for his actions claiming that he made the "Biggest mistake" of his life, and that it was a "one-time incident." He also said, "My actions that night were totally inexcusable. That night I replay over and over in my head. That's not me. My actions were inexcusable. That's something I have to live with the rest of my life."

Ray Rice publicly apologizing earlier today

ESPN Commentator Stephen A. Smith 

The length of the suspension has been met with a lot of controversy, some thinking that it should be longer, and some supporting the decision. There has also been controversy over the hotel incident itself. ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith was suspended for a week after commenting on the incident on the network's TV show First Take. He said "But what I've tried to employ the female members of my family, some of who you all met and talked to and what have you, is that again, and this what, I've done this all my life, let's make sure we don't do anything to provoke wrong actions." This understandably didn't sit well with viewers, and the complains started being tweeted in. Even ESPN's Michelle Beadle tweeted "So I was just forced to watch this morning's First Take. A) I'll never feel clean again B) I'm now aware that I can provoke my own beating." Smith has since apologized and will be back commentating next week.

Both of these guys royally messed up. I hope that it truly was a one-time incident for Ray Rice, and if I had a Twitter account, I would have been tweeting my disappointment and disapproval at Stephen A. Smith along with everyone else. Professional sports figures and commentators need to realize that people look up to them, and are always watching.