Sure it does. It would mean more if they had a smoking gun and they are dead set on finding one it seems. I just watched a panel of idiots talk about this very case and they are still saying "if he is cleared" "when and if he is cleared" "this is still a sticky situation" It does no good to ring the bell and say "You see, we kept this guy from being drafted" when it turns out they were wrong.
I didn't say they reacted correctly but they did react. I agree it's a systemic issue and isn't solved by pink socks or a 2 game fine. Take the player safety issue for example. Do you think the NFL does anything about player safety if the former players didn't sue the league? Hell no, that was a reaction to the lawsuit. The Saints bounty gate thing, a reaction to the lawsuit. It all boils down to money. That's why there is no serious talk about protecting offensive linemen, or tailbacks. They only want to protect the players that put fans in the seat and sell jerseys. The QB's and Receivers.
Because it's salacious and it helps ratings. That is what the media does, including ESPiN. Weigh the potential outcomes. He is guilty....they draft him and look bad, they hold him out and they look smart/sympathetic. He is innocent....they draft him but folks say they didn't care. They hold him out of the draft and Collins is the loser. The league loses nothing.
Going undrafted in the first round has cost Collins millions of dollars. For now, he is eligible only for a standard three-year contract given to undrafted free agents, which pays $435,000 in 2015, $525,000 in 2016, and $615,000 in 2017. Also, bonuses are limited for undrafted free agents, with each team limited to spending about $87,000 for all undrafted free agents combined.
When Collins gets a chance to sign an NFL contract and get away from this mess, New Orleans won't be far enough.
The problem with Canada is that the pay is lousy--about 80K instead of 450K. It would keep him fit, but risk injury for nothing much in return, and won't make him as valuable in two years as playing and starting for an NFL team. His best bet is to put his head down and play like there is no tomorrow as a free agent. Then in two years he can renegotiate for a big contract a year ahead of the rest of his draft class.
"The Seahawks were criticized after drafting Frank Clark, a defensive end who was dismissed from Michigan's football team in November after he was arrested on domestic violence charges (which were dropped and reduced last month), with their first pick. Now there are questions whether the team did its due diligence in looking into Clark's background. Seattle general manager John Schneider, who said prior to the 2012 NFL Draft that his team "would never take a player that struck a female or had a domestic violence dispute like that," was asked Friday night if that's still his stance. "Yeah, it still is," Schneider said, via ESPN. "I can't get into all the specifics of Frank's case, but that is still a deal-breaker for us and will continue to be." According to the police report, Clark's girlfriend claimed he punched her in the face after an altercation. The woman's brother, who was also in the room, said he saw Clark pick her up by the neck and slam her to the ground. Photos from the report show marks on the girl's face and throat." They are all hypocrites.
