The Vikings and Panthers put Adrian Peterson and Greg Hardy on the exempt list, respectively, and some teams believe that it’s being misused, writes Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “It was really put in place for players coming off suspension to get reacclimated,” one league source said. Some teams believe that the clause essentially allows the Vikings and Panthers to carry 54 players on their rosters. In Florio’s view, this usage of the clause could be the wave of the future if players continue to find themselves in legal trouble. Here’s more from around the NFL..
- If commissioner Roger Goodell wanted to suspend the Hardy and Peterson now under the personal conduct policy, it would have likely backfired without their legal cases resolved, writes Jarrett Bell of USA Today. Players have a right to a hearing and an appeal and the policy would have dictated that both of the players would have played this weekend had the NFL initiated action. While the usage of the exempt list might not be in the spirit of the rule, it was far preferable to the NFL since it puts both players on the sidelines immediately.
- You won’t find many supporters of commissioner Roger Goodell this week but Jets quarterback Michael Vick is one of them, as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com writes. “You have to give the man a chance, you have to him a chance, you have to give everybody a chance to get it right,” said Vick, went on to say that Goodell is “doing a great job.”
- Cardinals coach Bruce Arians knows how ugly the past few weeks have been in the NFL, but he believes that, ultimately, some good can come of it, tweets Darren Urban of AZCardinals.com. “If this bad scar on the NFL right now makes the rest of the world aware of what’s going on, it’s damn good.”