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Eli Manning, Victor Cruz address NFL's current struggles
The NFL's ongoing struggles have put every single player in the spotlight, each one a de facto representative of the league and its policies. Some, like Tom Brady, have shrugged their shoulders and declined to speak about anything other than X's and O's. Others have addressed the questions of domestic violence and the league's image head-on.
Yes, it's fallen to Eli Manning to go where Brady refused to tread. (You can write your own Super Bowl-related jokes here.) At Wednesday's Giants media session, Manning was asked about the league's current problems with domestic violence, alleged child abuse, and other crises.
"Obviously, those are serious issues. We've got to make sure that's not happening," Manning said. "We can't accept that as players, can't accept that from our teammates around the league." Manning is one of the first, if not the first, active players to call out other players' actions as unacceptable.
Manning added a more heartfelt sentiment when discussing child abuse. "You hate to see a child that is being hurt," he said. "You don't like seeing those things or hearing about them. Just try to go home and hug your own children. It makes you want to hopefully not put them in harm's way."
Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz noted the larger issue: "Obviously it creates that stigma for the rest of the league, but there has got to be guys like myself, guys like Eli Manning and Antrel Rolle, (who) have a positive image and do things in their communities ... We have to be able to put those things on the forefront. It is up to us and guys like that to create that energy and that kind of atmosphere for everyone. Not just everyone on our team, but around the league."
The NFL's facing an image crisis unprecedented in its history. Clearly, the commissioner and several star players intend to remain silent. The ones that don't, however, deserve recognition for understanding that this current crisis is far more important than standings or on-field performance.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Facebook or on Twitter.
