Why Would NFL Ask A Domestic Violence Victim to Open ‘Thursday Night Football’?
Update: On Thursday, CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus told SI.com that the network will not run an opener featuring a performance by Jay Z and Rihanna during the Sept. 11 kick-off of “Thursday Night Football.’’
On Thursday, journalists and social media users realized that Rihanna, a domestic violence victim, would be opening for the Baltimore Ravens-Pittsburgh Steelers game tonight — three days after former Ravens running back Ray Rice was suspended indefinitely by the NFL for striking his wife.
On Sept. 2, the NFL Network announced that Rihanna and Jay Z’s track, “Run this Town,’’ would serve as the theme of 16 weekly “Thursday Night Football’’ broadcasts. The intro package would include accompanying narration by Academy Award nominee, Don Cheadle.
All sounds well and good here, right? You’ve got two A-list musicians and an A-list actor opening up one of football’s biggest recurring nights.
Wrong.
The NFL Network and CBS Sports lacked the foresight to see that Rihanna, a woman who was the victim of domestic abuse committed by ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, would in effect be opening for the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 11 — which up until three days ago, was the team of running back Ray Rice.
The same Ray Rice, who on July 25, was suspended by the Ravens for striking his now wife, Janay Palmer Rice, in a Feb. 15 altercation. The Pro Bowler has since had his contract terminated by the team and been suspended indefinitely by the NFL (after video of the domestic violence incident was released by TMZ).
Boston.com isn’t the only organization to put two-and-two together.
The Washington Post’s Soraya Nadia McDonald wrote that Rihanna and Jay Z’s opener “will be another reminder of what [Rihanna] and the NFL have in common: an unfortunate, high-profile connection to domestic violence.’’
espnW writer D’Arcy Maine remarked, “Just when you thought the NFL couldn’t dig itself any deeper into a hole, it somehow finds a way.’’
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