Carolina Panthers owner defends handling of Greg Hardy situation

By Cory Buck | Sep 11, 2014

Sep 7, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Carolina Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy warms-up before facing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports /

While Ray Rice dominates the headlines, a similar case deals with domestic violence being potentially outweighed by the high profile of an NFL star. Greg Hardy of the Carolina Panthers awaits trial in November for threatening to kill his girlfriend. In the meantime, he’s still fully suited up and playing for the Panthers. Outrage has grown over Hardy’s case, but Panthers owner Jerry Richardson made it clear that Rice’s and Hardy’s cases are apples and oranges.

More from Carolina Panthers

Panthers fan site Black and Blue Review posted a video of Richardson accepting an award in which he also addresses the Greg Hardy issue. He had this to say about the case.

"“When it comes to domestic violence, my stance is not one of indifference. I stand firmly against domestic violence, plain and simple. To those who would suggest we’ve been too slow to act, I ask that you consider to not be too quick to judge. Over the course of our 20 years, we have worked extremely hard to build an organization with integrity and earn the trust of your community. I look forward to continuing to earn your trust and I thank you for this award.”"

Of course it’s easy to say these things when your star player is still on the field. As hard as we might want to be on Richardson and the NFL for allowing Greg Hardy to play after the league banned Ray Rice, it bears mentioning that Hardy still has a court date pending. While this process as a whole should probably be reviewed, all parties involved are adhering to the rules set forth in the CBA by allowing Hardy to play.

One just has to wonder how long those rules will remain in place as scrutiny dogs the NFL’s every move.

Home/Carolina Panthers