Two years after his ouster from the Baltimore Ravens, Ray Rice–who, as you may recall, was caught on video cold-clocking his then-fiancee Janay and then dragging her unconscious body out of an elevator–has maintained close ties with his former team.
Yesterday, Rice gave a speech to Ravens first-year players about “life lessons he has encountered during his time as a player,” according to the NFL. This was apparently Rice’s first official visit back to the Ravens facility in the nearly two years since he was kicked off the team; Janay, who is pregnant with the couple’s second child, came along with him.
Rice has slowly been attempting to redeem himself and rebuild his image, and it seems to be working; in recent months, both a Ravens spokesperson and a representative from a non-profit group that combats violence against women have argued that he deserves a second chance. Rice has been reinstated by the NFL, so he theoretically could play again–and he’s been working out hard five days a week, according to a recent profile. Perhaps some of that is the “good and the bad” that Rice apparently shared with the rookies. Let’s hope he at least gave them one simple message: don’t hit your girlfriend/wife/fiancee.
