Justin Tucker does not deserve the sympathy he wants.
After the NFL announced Tucker’s 10-week suspension Thursday, his agent took to social media to claim what a good guy the former Baltimore Ravens kicker is, how he has “always strived to carry himself in a way that would make his family and community proud.” But there are at least 16 women who will tell you differently, and all sympathy should be reserved for them.
“I don’t think it’s enough,” one of the women told The Baltimore Banner. “He got 10 weeks and we have to deal with this the rest of our lives.”
Tucker might be a standup guy to his family and friends. He might be a great teammate and a good representative of his team. But 16 women told the Banner that Tucker was sexually inappropriate with them, in details that were as similar as they were disturbing.
Tucker intentionally exposed himself during massages booked outside the team, the women said. In some cases, therapists said he brushed his erect penis against them. At least four therapists told the Banner they found what appeared to be ejaculate on the sheet after Tucker left.
Several of the women provided corroboration of their experiences, and two spas told the Banner they had banned Tucker because of his inappropriate behavior.
Does that sound like the behavior of the upstanding citizen Tucker’s agent is describing? Or does it sound like someone who saw those women as disposable and treated them as such?
And before you squawk about Tucker not facing criminal charges, just … don’t. The NFL did its own investigation and saw fit to give him a 10-week suspension. That’s an eternity in the NFL, which normally has as little regard for women as Tucker does.
It really is not that hard not to be a garbage human. Treat others how you want to be treated. Be kind. Say please and thank you and don’t be rude. Share. Speak up when something is wrong. Defend those who are being mistreated.
You know, the lessons we all had down by the time we went to kindergarten.
But some people get it in their heads that because they have money or power or some special skill, those rules no longer apply. That because of their circumstances, whether earned or given, they get a pass.
They can take more than their fair share. They can ridicule people they don’t like. They can treat people as if they’re less than.
They can dehumanize and demean women.
“I’ve told people about this over the years, and they act like it’s hot (gossip) or a joke,” a therapist who worked on Tucker in 2016 told the Banner in a story published in January. “It was really degrading.”
Tucker is hardly the first athlete to behave badly. He’s not even the only NFL player to be abusive to women. But it’s never OK, and excusing Tucker because he’s outwardly a good guy or because most of the incidents happened more than a decade ago doesn’t negate them.
That this is likely to end Tucker’s illustrious career is of little consolation, either. Tucker was cut by the Ravens in May and while he can sign with another team and even participate in training camp, that’s unlikely.
Not because of the suspension, of course. Deshaun Watson was suspended for two-thirds of the season for similar misdeeds and he’s still in the league. But Tucker is a 35-year-old kicker who had the worst season of his career last year, and there’s only so much NFL teams are willing to forgive.
That’s the worst of it, though. The end of his career clouded in shame and a blemish to a Hall of Fame career that will fade by the time he’s ready for Canton. The scars for the women run deeper and, unlike Tucker’s suspension, are permanent.
Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.
