Following a damning ESPN report claiming that the Baltimore Ravens knew about the video of Ray Rice assaulting his then-fiancée, the team on Monday released a point-by-point rebuttal of the report.
In the statement, Ravens head of security Darren Sanders said that the Ravens did not immediately gain knowledge of the video, but obtained a description of the video in February.
“I did not receive an account of what happened in the elevator ‘within hours’ of the incident,” Sanders said, noting that he reached out to the Atlanta police multiple times. “Some days later—I believe it was on February 25—I spoke to an Atlantic City police official again, asking again whether I could get a copy of the tape or, if not, whether I could come to his New Jersey office and view it. He said I could not, but he did offer to view the tape and describe what he saw.”
The ESPN report said that after Rice was cut from the team, Ravens Owner Steve Bisciotti (pictured above) sent Rice text messages telling him that the Ravens could re-hire him for an off-field position.
Bisciotti acknowledged in the statement that he did text Rice after he was cut.
“I did have an exchange of text messages with Ray, which he initiated. I felt awful about what had happened. I believed he was, at heart, a good person, that he was capable of redemption, and I wanted to tell him I would be supportive of him,” he said in the statement.
Bisciotti included his text exchange with Rice in the statement:
Monday September 8, 7:44 pm
Ray: I understand the decision but I am thankful for what you have done for me and my family. Me and my wife will continue to work on us and being better but I just wanted to say thank you for giving me a chance
Steve: I’m sorry we had to do this. I still love you and believe that you will be a great husband and father If you ever need to talk just call
Tuesday September 9, 10:27 pm
Steve: I just spent two hours talking to Ozzie. It was all about you. We love you and we will always figure out a way to keep you in our lives. When you are done with football I will hire you to help me raise Great young men. I still love you!!!
Ray: I know it’s a rough time for all of us I love all of you and that will never change for life!
Steve: I will help you make it a great life indeed. I give you my WORD
Ray: That means the world to me and my family we greatly appreciate you and thank you.
In a press conference on Friday, Bisciotti clarified that Rice would not play for the Ravens again but said has considered hiring Rice to help the league as a mentor on domestic violence issues.
In the statement, Bisciotti also rebutted ESPN’s claim that the Ravens engaged in “purposeful misdirection” when handling the Ray Rice case.
“As I stated in our letter to you on September 9, we did not do all we should have done, and no amount of explanation can remedy that. But there has been no misdirection or misinformation by the Ravens,” he said. “We have stated what we knew and what we thought throughout – from the original report of the incident, to the release of the first videotape, to the release of the second videotape, which revealed a much harsher reality.”
When asked on Monday if he has lost faith in NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Bisciotti said, “Not really.”
Read the Ravens’ full rebuttal here.
This seems less damning than the ESPN report.
Seriously? WTF difference does it make whether you saw a video of the assault? Within days, hours, weeks, whatever, you were told by law enforcement and Ray Rice himself what happened in the elevator.
Someone help me here. Does an assault change in magnitude because it was on video? NFL and the Ravens decided on a 2 game suspension based on the info it received. Then the video is shown to the public and suddenly Ray Rice is banned. Is that NFL policy now, suspension for bad acts, unless they are on film then you are banned. What a bunch of clowns.
Yeah, I listened to his statements live, and he was as defensive as they come. Fact of the matter is, as he stated himself, no one expected anything other than a 2 game suspension for domestic violence. So, what’s he saying is that the NFL, the team, whoever, knows there’s a problem with players hitting their wives, girlfriends, fiancées, whomever, and 2 games is more than enough. Bottom line is these guys don’t give a shit about anything.
And don’t believe for a second Ray Rice is out forever. That’s just another lie.
why do they make these contorted / nuanced / parsed statements - when they have to know - NOBODY believes the statements that are this awkward & nuanced.
This is like J-Law claiming the videos are faked/photoshopped AFTER her lawyer sends the cease and desist letter to 4chan and reddit.