NFL needs to place Von Miller on the Commissioner's Exempt List
Editor's Note: This is an opinion piece and in no way accuses Von Miller of committing domestic violence. Buffalo Bills star pass rusher Von Miller turned himself in to police during the team's bye week. He was charged with third-degree felony assault after allegedly assaulting a pregnant person and was released on bond shortly after.Since then, the […]
Editor's Note: This is an opinion piece and in no way accuses Von Miller of committing domestic violence.
Buffalo Bills star pass rusher Von Miller turned himself in to police during the team's bye week. He was charged with third-degree felony assault after allegedly assaulting a pregnant person and was released on bond shortly after.
Since then, the alleged victim has recanted her story through text messages with WFAA, a Dallas news station. She's been quoted as saying, "No one assaulted anyone", which is a stark contrast between what was said during the 911 call and written in a detailed affidavit, and it has only created more questions.
Bills general manager Brandon Beane told reporters Wednesday that he doesn't think the NFL will place Miller on the Commissioner's Exempt List. He also said Miller is available to play this weekend and that "he'll participate like normal in practice".
"We're in constant communication with them, and they would let us know," Beane told reporters. "But [from] my most recent conversation – that was not anticipated."
He didn't completely shut the door on Roger Goodell potentially reversing course, however. A new development, at an undesignated time, could sway things in a different direction and result in a different outcome. The Bills could always deactivate Miller ahead of the game if they wanted, as well.
"Anytime it's an ongoing investigation, if something was uncovered, the Commissioner… at any point, if he feels there was something [like], 'Hey, this doesn't look good,' or, you know, something like that. At any point he could, but with our knowledge of what we have today, we don't expect that."
With that being said, Roger Goodell does need to step in and place Miller on the Commissioner's Exempt List. He needs to conduct his own investigation into the matter, because the details of the 911 call and affidavit are serious and shouldn't be left by the wayside.
That's not the only reason, either.
Miller's past history is the catalyst behind the NFL's necessary involvement
Police investigated Miller in 2021 for an incident with the same woman after she posted on Instagram, “My heart goes out to any woman/ or man who is or has ever dealt with mental, physical, or verbal abuse." She also shared screenshots of text messages sent by Miller where he wrote that he hoped she would have a miscarriage and then told her to get an abortion.
There is a history, here, and Goodell needs to take that into major consideration during his process.
The alleged victim walked back her statements back in 2021 and has now done it a second time around. It's obvious the legal system can only do so much with that, but the NFL, as we all know, isn't the legal system. It can do whatever it wants.
Goodell is walking a dangerous line, here, and it's hard to ignore because of the situation itself and the league's history of navigating domestic violence. There is a pattern of alleged behavior that doesn't dictate another event, but it certainly raises the possibility.
But, it can show everyone how serious it is when it comes to avoiding these alleged situations, in general. And, again, it's not the first time Miller has been accused of being involved in a domestic situation. Placing him on the exempt list makes the Super Bowl MVP aware of the fact that he needs to avoid any confrontation at all costs in the future. That goes for the other players, as well.
The NFL's track record when handling these cases has not been great, starting with the Ray Rice incident back in 2014. Even more recently, it took Chris Claybrooks getting arrested not once, but twice, for domestic assault before the league stepped in. The Jacksonville Jaguars player was arrested in April 2023 and charged with misdemeanor domestic assault with bodily injury and vandalism, but nothing happened. The charges were dropped in May because a settlement was reached but, that was a month after the initial arrest and charges.
Yes, there needs to be due process, but at the same time, it's yet another example of how the NFL moves too slowly in these instances. They had a chance to send Claybrooks a message, but they didn't. And look what happened, again.
No one is saying Miller will commit domestic violence in the future. That's not what this is about, at all. At the same time, the NFL needs to show it's serious about these allegations. Even Beane went into detail about how serious things are.
"You never want anyone in your organization, no matter what organization you're in, to have an allegation like that. That's a very serious nature and something that we're going to take every precaution with…
"… I think Von would tell you that no one wants their name associated with any accusation like that. So, that's a natural disappointment. I'm sure he's disappointed."
What being on the Commissioner's Exempt List means
If Miller were placed on the exempt list, he'd be absent from all football-related activities, including practice. He can still be at the team facility, in meetings and workouts, and he could still receive treatment. They still get paid, too, but they do not count toward the active roster.
Miller would only be able to return to practice and play in games after Goodell says so. Goodell and Goodell, alone, is allowed to decided who goes on the list and when they come off of it.
