Few would argue Vontaze Burfict is a very talented football player. From his days at Arizona State to the present with the Bengals, his determination and skill set on the football field are indisputable. But while there can be no doubt about the talent he brings every Sunday, there is another side that has again reared its ugly head.
Vontaze Burfict is a serial offender of the NFL’s rules, with repeated slaps on the wrist doing little to curb his on-field behavior. His flagrant disregard for the safety of others throughout his career has not only hurt the teams he has played with, but gives a black eye to the NFL. What happened on Saturday night in the Wild Card game against the Steelers was much more than playing hard-nosed football—in fact, it bordered on criminal.
Vontaze Burfict’s Suspension – Not a ‘Perfect’ Outcome
Burfict and his reputation have followed him from his days at ASU. He was one of the most gifted defensive players in college. But in only a few years he already built a reputation for himself with his on and off-field issues causing NFL teams to pass him him over in the draft that year. Statistically, he led the team in defensive plays, but was called for 17 personal fouls in his tenure at Arizona State. His run-ins with opposing players, and his inability to control his temper caused him to be benched during the regular season and even a bowl game.
The Cincinnati Bengals, a team known for not shying away from players with troubled pasts, signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2012. To many experts, there was a reason that he wasn’t taken by any of the other teams that year. Most scouts recognized that he likes to lead with his head, and is known to leave his feet when trying to hit opposing players – two acts the NFL is desperately trying to rid from the game. Of course, for anyone who watched the AFC Wild Card game on Saturday night, this is exactly what landed Burfict in hot water again, as he launched himself, helmet first, at a defenseless Antonio Brown.
Brown laid on the field, concussed, and clearly shaken up from the helmet to helmet blow. Burfict argued his case to the refs to no avail and was flagged for a personal foul. Given the situation, a 15-yard penalty was not enough. From the moment the two teams took to the field, officials from the league and security stood at the 50-yard line to patrol the situation between the two hostile foes. But as the game wore on and the situation became more tense, the Burfict hit—even more so than the Shazier hit on Cincinnati running back Bernard earlier in the game—made the situation dire.
The NFL, in their continued head-scratching way, suspended Burfict for the first three games of the 2016-17 season—much more lenient than most fans thought he was going to receive given his past offenses. The last time the Bengals and Steelers met, he was flagged and fined for three penalties, including a low, flagrant hit on Ben Roethlisberger. Prior to this season, Burfict was fined over $67,000 for other infractions, though many question whether fines are effective in curbing negative behavior.
He will most likely appeal the suspension handed down by the NFL, and all eyes will be on the NFL Player’s Association to see how it chooses to handle the appeal. It will also be interesting to see what support, if any, comes from the Bengals.
This brings us to Marvin Lewis, the coach of the Bengals. His success as a coach is documented. Despite injuries, he manages to get the most out of his team on both sides of the ball, which is a testimony to his X’s and O’s. But what about his accountability for his team’s actions? Is Lewis to blame for some of what transpired to some degree? Should he be held accountable for how his team chooses to play? Some argue that he should be fired, but that’s not going to happen as long as he keeps winning as often as he does—well, at least in the regular season.
It wasn’t just the players whose actions have been heavily scrutinized. As Ben Roethlisberger was carted off the field with an apparent shoulder injury, Bengals fans, not known to be so hostile, cheered the hit and even threw bottles as he was taken into the locker room. The despicable behavior of some hometown fans left other Bengals fans embarrassed.
If the league is truly seeking to rid itself of clear attempts to injure, then it needs to take a strong approach when dealing out discipline. There are rivalries across the NFL, some more heated than others, but players cannot take matters into their own hands, and, unfortunately, it has become an all-too-familiar occurrence in the league
The league needs to be proactive, not reactive. The NFL—its owners, referees and Players’ Association—need to commit to a more hard-line approach to discipline. Fines, short suspensions, and penalties won’t do anything to fix ruined careers.
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