BLOG

Recently plagued with negative press regarding professional football players' criminal records, the National Football League (NFL) has created a new policy requiring that background checks be conducted on any draft prospect.

This means that a prospective player must sign an authorization and be willing to have their criminal history investigated prior to being allowed to attend the 2016 NFL Combine or any other draft event. According to the NFL's Executive Vice President of Football Operations, Troy Vincent, players will be refused participation if they do not consent or if their background check reveals convictions of domestic violence or sexual assault.

Vincent stated, "It is important for us to remain strongly committed to league values as we demonstrate to our fans, future players, coaches, general managers, and others who support our game that character matters."

The door isn't fully closed to players with the aforementioned convictions. The NFL will allow players banned from the Combine to still be able to interview with teams on an individual basis. The teams can then make their own decision whether or not to draft them.

This should be a step in the right direction for the NFL and allow teams to make informed decisions about their prospective players without focusing solely on individual talent, while earning the league a better reputation in the eyes of the public.