So much for "What happens in Atlantic City, stays in...". Oops, wrong city.
Good riddance to Rice. But, as despicable as the punch was, and his reaction to it, i still have no doubt he will be back. The league set a precedent with bringing Vick back. RR will disappear for a year or two, he'll do mandatory community service, go to anger management counseling, probably do some lectures for an organization against spousal abuse, etc. He might even play a season in the CFL or AFL. But he'll be back.
This could get dangerous for the NFL because whatever precedent they set for domestic violence now will have longer lasting repercussions than what Vick's case did. I would say the probability is higher that an NFL player will have hit his wife or girlfriend than killed an animal. The league could see incidents like this once or twice a year from now on. All it takes is one domestic incident to make the news and the NFL front office will have another media mess. They better get this right, for their own sakes. That's why I don't see a lifetime ban. He deserves to lose at least a season, but I don't see him being gone more than two if there's no jail time and he stands up and does what he needs to do to make things right.
