Ed Reed on Ray Rice getting a second chance: 'I think he deserves it'

Ed Reed may have just left the Ravens when Ray Rice's domestic violence scandal broke out, but the two were teammates from 2008-2012, and it's evident that Reed feels a certain bond with Rice. So when Reed was asked whether Rice deserves a second chance in the NFL, he answered it from a different perspective than most who've given their opinion on the matter.

"Oh, man," Reed said at his foundation's golf tournament. "I'm not just an analyst looking at it, I'm his brother, too. And it's a tough situation on either side."

With that being said, Reed does in fact think Rice should get another shot in the league.

"I think he deserves it. I know teams that need him. But, at the same time, how we are as a society, how things are -- I'm not going to say 'blown up' because it is a very sensitive thing that's going on in our country and around the world -- but we're a compassionate, forgiving people. And people make mistakes."

Reed, who recently retired from the NFL after 12 illustrious seasons, says that Rice is another example of an NFL player being scrutinized more because of the sport he plays.

"We gotta really look at -- and I'll say the NFL gotta look at -- how they punish the players versus other folks," he said. "We make an example out of the football players, and specifically we make an example out of NFL football players, more than any other sport or any thing. It's like we're the example. Why is that? Why do NFL players have to be the example?"

The Rice debate is one that's been heating up in recent weeks, but it remains to be seen whether a franchise actually signs the 28-year-old running back. If no one does give Rice a call, however, Reed believes Rice would still be content.

"Like I told Ray, 'Keep working man. You deserve it.' But at the end of the day you gotta be all right with yourself. And I know he is. And if he never played another down, I know at the end of the day his family is more important, and he'll be okay."




(csnbaltimore.com)