Big Ben in Trouble Again

In case some of you guys have not been following NFL news lately, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is back in hot water again. Mr. Roethlisberger was recently involved with his second sexual assault allegation in the past nine months to add to his already turbulent behavioral history record, which includes a June 2006 motorcycle crash in which he was wearing no helmet and almost bled to death. Oh goodness Ben, where do I begin?

For starters, Ben, you need to stop putting yourself in these situations. Your first predicament took place in Lake Tahoe, CA after a 31-year-old casino hostess named Andrea McNulty filed a civil lawsuit against you in July 2009. She claimed you sexually assaulted her in June 2008 while you were in town for a celebrity golf tournament.

Based on the lack of physical evidence, the fact that McNulty didn’t file a civil complaint when this actually happened (which was over a year prior to when the civil suit was filed), and that she was overheard bragging to co-workers about having consensual sex with you, my best guess is that you’re innocent and were simply caught in a bad situation. We all make mistakes and all NFL players tend to get at least one freebie under the league’s personal conduct policy. This is your freebie, Ben. Learn from it and do not do it again.

Flash forward to March 2010. You’re in Milledgeville, GA at the Capital City nightclub with some of your friends. One thing leads to another, and by the end of the night you’re talking to the police again after a 20-year-old female student from Georgia State claims you sexually assaulted her in the bathroom while you were intoxicated. And although the local district attorney did not file charges, why in the hell are you putting yourself in this same situation again? You still have the ongoing civil suit filed by McNulty that is fresh in everybody’s mind.

It is a shame Ben Roethlisberger does not have a College Voice subscription because if he did he could’ve read my article a few months ago when I wrote about Gilbert Arenas and his gun problems. There is a really simple solution to avoiding situations like this. Stay home. Don’t go out to the bar, nightclub or whatever. I’m sure you have millions of dollars and a fabulous, luxurious house. Entertain yourself there. Watch basketball on your 100” plasma screen television. Think of something to do because you have unfortunately forfeited your right to go to social places like bars and nightclubs because you cannot stay out of trouble or the limelight of the media.

Even if you were going out to bar and had one beer, it only takes one person to snap a cell phone picture of you at the bar and the next thing you know we see headlines on ESPN of “Roethlisberger Drinking Again” or “Big Ben Back on the Bottle” even though you weren’t doing anything criminal. But because of the situations you’ve put yourself in, every little move or mistake you make is going to be incredibly scrutinized. As sports radio host Dan Patrick likes to say “you’re one bad Friday night away from a major suspension from the NFL.” It’s safe to say you’re going to be suspended for at least a few games at the beginning of the 2010 NFL season after your meeting with commissioner Roger Goodell.

You’re a two-time Super Bowl championship quarterback. People know who you are and know what you look like. You have to understand you have a target on your back. I know it’s unfortunate but there are women out there (and I am not saying McNulty and this Georgia State student) that get involved with men that have money and make up allegations or stories in order to extrapolate money from you while in the process severely tarnishing your image. We all saw this with the Duke Lacrosse case so it certainly is within the realm of possibilities. But you cannot just blame them because you are the one putting yourself in dangerous situations with your poor judgment and decision-making.

And it’s not just your image being affected. The Pittsburgh Steelers are considered one of the most respected organizations in the entire league. They just traded Super Bowl MVP Santonio Holmes to the New York Jets for a fifth-round draft pick because they were tired of his constant run-ins with the law and they could easily pull the trigger on you.

You make the Steelers look like fools for putting up with your antics, you embarrass the most respected owners in the game in the Rooney family, and you do a disservice to your teammates who have to deal with the constant answering of media questions about you and your sexual assault cases.

Not to mention all the fans, especially kids who look up to you as their favorite player only to have their parents explain the real reason you are on television so much right now when it is not even football season. Get your act together because it’s time to grow up, Ben.