David Newton reports the good news for Greg Hardy fans:
Carolina Panthers on Greg Hardy situation -- Letting process play out - ESPN
"We are in a process, and we're letting the process play its way out," Carolina coach Ron Rivera said Friday. "Because of that, we're following through with the situation, set of circumstances. We're not trying to do anything below board or way above board."We're trying to go through the process as we understand it. We're going to do the best we can. The players have handled it tremendously well. It's been really hard on them, I know, as far as those things. But again, get on the football field and be able to handle those situations, circumstances, that's what the guys have done."
Hardy will continue to suit up on Sunday's until the case is heard which is not expected until 2015 due to the courts case load. Earlier in the week team owner Jerry Richardson addressed the issue while receiving an award and the owner showed a softer side we have rarely seen:
"Standing before you tonight, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge an issue weighing heavily on our sport and our society," Richardson said. "When it comes to domestic violence, my stance is not one of indifference. I stand firmly against domestic violence, plain and simple."
Panther Head Coach Ron Rivera also addressed the issue of Hardy being a distraction to the team:
Rivera said there is concern that the outside distractions will have an impact on the team's performance against Detroit. He added that he has to walk a fine line not to give the perception the team isn't taking the matter seriously. "It's tough. I get it. I understand the circumstances," he said. "But at the same time, we've got to push through things."
Hopefully we can put this to bed until after the season. Of course hopefully the rest of the players in the NFL will behave off the field so we can now focus on football.