The situation surrounding Denver Broncos defensive lineman Antonio Smith is troubling, to say the least. He is allegedly involved in a case that has to do with child abuse that is sexual in nature, something you never want to read about anyone ever.
This apparently occurred back in November, and the Broncos signed Smith to a free agent contract this Spring worth about $2 million.
The Broncos claim to have no knowledge of the situation, which to me is blatant ignorance. I can’t remember a job or volunteer opportunity I’ve ever had in my life where a background check wasn’t required. So what in the ‘you know what’ are the Broncos doing in the front office if not background checks on the guys they are cutting humongous paychecks to?
How could you not do a quick little legal history check on Antonio Smith, and if you did, why was it not extensive enough to find this information about something that was apparently reported to police back in November?
An investigation on the matter was completed in February, so at worst the Broncos should have had that information. Are they simply lying about not having known this went on because they figured it would eventually blow over and Smith would be free to play with the team?
This is a really serious matter, something that the NFL has not taken lightly with recent idiotic decisions made by star players like Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, and Greg Hardy. Roger Goodell doesn’t exactly observe due process in these matters, and he could be willing to slam a ban hammer on Smith that would essentially force him out of the league.
I don’t buy that the Broncos didn’t know about this, because of they didn’t, it makes a fool of all of us ‘commoners’ who have to do extensive background checks for any job, much less a multi-million dollar job in the NFL with one of its best and classiest organizations.
If the Broncos truly didn’t know about Smith’s situation, they need to refine their interview process and not be so reckless when adding players. It makes me angry as a fan to support a team that would knowingly hire someone who did something like this, and even more angry to find they would hire someone not knowing it happened when there are clear steps to be taken to find this kind of stuff out, and then claiming ignorance.
In case you couldn’t tell, this is upsetting me.