By all means, if there's even a smidgen of a chance that Ben Roethlisberger's conduct unbecoming an NFL player is, in any way, connected to the concussions the Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback has suffered over the years, let's find out.
But let's not automatically allow it to become an excuse.
Yes, football players take a beating. And there are plenty of stories about football players gone wild. Mr. Roethlisberger has taken his share of lickings. Have concussions played a role⢠That remains to be seen.
But it strikes us a too-convenient excuse for a pattern of alleged behavior that seems to have its roots not in any closed-head injury but in a sense of entitlement.
Did repeated concussions lead Roethlisberger to, as alleged, drink too much, expose himself to a woman plied with shots of alcohol and attempt to force himself on her in a Georgia bar?
Did they lead to Roethlisberger's alleged interactions with a female hotel employee in Las Vegas?
Have there been any similar patterns of behavior before Roethlisberger suffering any concussions?
Even if medical science can prove a concussion connection for such alleged behavior, the simple fact remains that Roethlisberger, by his execution on the field of play, remains a high-functioning human being.
And bad behavior is bad behavior. Let's be very careful to leave the scapegoats on the sidelines.
