The Baltimore Ravens called an emergency meeting on Friday afternoon, and it's likely that the bombshell contents of an ESPN "Outside the Lines" report is the reason why.
Included in the 7,000-word-plus story by Don Van Natta Jr. and Kevin Van Valkenberg is a firm assertion that the Ravens had known nearly immediately that former running back Ray Rice had punched his then-fiancee in the face in a casino elevator during the offseason.
Per the report, Ravens director of security Darren Sanders had spoken with an Atlantic City police officer just hours after the incident, as the officer “described in detail to Sanders what he was seeing.”
While the mistakes that followed will likely haunt the Ravens for a long time, these texts from Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti to Rice on the day of his release (the day the full surveillance video of the incident was made public by TMZ) might be the most troubling of all:
“Hey Ray, just want to let you know, we loved you as a player, it was great having you here. Hopefully all these things are going to die down. I wish the best for you and Janay.”
“When you’re done with football, I’d like you to know you have a job waiting for you with the Ravens helping young guys getting acclimated to the league.”
You can read the entire ESPN report at this link - an investigation that could end up shaking up the entire NFL when all is said and done.
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