Last week at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Detroit Lions general manager Bob Quinn ruffled some feathers when he made the following comment regarding drafting Joe Mixon.
“We’re going to leave the door open on Joe.”
Mixon, of course, is a highly skilled running back out of Oklahoma who landed himself is some very hot water after violently punching a fellow student, Amelia Molitor back in 2014. In the video, Molitor is seen shoving Mixon, who retaliates by punching her in the face, causing her head to slam into a table in the restaurant. Molitor suffered fractures in her cheekbones and jaw.
On Friday, the Detroit Free Press published an article by writer Carlos Monarrez which absolutely destroyed Quinn and the Detroit Lions for even considering Mixon.
There is no other way to put this. Bob Quinn disgusts me. The Detroit Lions disgust me. And the organization should be ashamed of itself.
Here’s the only thing you need to know about the Mixon situation and where the Lions should stand on this issue: You don’t hit women! Ever!
Is that clear enough?
Monarrez went on about people wanting to give Mixon a second chance since the incident happened a “long time ago” and how he had already been punished for the crime.
But Monarrez challenged Quinn to look at things from a different perspective than just automatically giving Mixon a second chance.
Here’s my proposal for Quinn. Look at that video again. Now imagine Amelia Molitor is your daughter. If Mixon had punched your daughter and your daughter had suffered broken bones in her face, would you consider drafting him?
What about team owner Martha Ford? What if Mixon had assaulted Ford and broken bones in her face? Would Quinn be thinking about vetting Mixon and giving him a chance to explain himself?
As the father of a daughter that I love more than anything in the world, what Monarrez wrote really did make me think about things a bit differently. Sure, I believe in giving somebody a second chance in life, especially if they served their time and paid for their mistakes. But is sitting out two seasons at Oklahoma really paying for what Mixon did to Molitor back in 2014?
There is also something else to consider in all of this before bashing Quinn and the Lions. Quinn comes from the New England Patriots, an organization known for keeping EVERYTHING under wraps. There is a good possibility that the only reason he said that Mixon was an option was to not show his hand before the draft even begins. Think about it, if another team that wants to draft Mixon thinks Quinn is also interested, it can only benefit the Lions.
Personally, despite including Joe Mixon in my most recent mock draft, I have had a change of heart. Though Mixon may be a talented player, if I were GM of the Lions and Mixon was available, even in the last round of the NFL Draft, I would not be able to pull the trigger. I truly hope he has learned from his mistakes and is able to move on and lead a productive life, but I hope it is somewhere other than with the Detroit Lions.
Nation, what would you do?
*To read the rest of the article by Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press, please click here.
