The reaction to the Dwayne Haskins domestic violence report has shifted.
Early Thursday, we found out Haskins' wife is facing a domestic violence charge for allegedly assaulting him in a Las Vegas hotel room. The altercation took place July 3 at The Cosmopolitan.
According to reports, Kalabrya Gondrezick-Haskins is accused of punching her husband in the mouth, resulting in substantial injuries. Haskins, 24, had a split upper lip and missing tooth, along with other oral injuries. Police were called at 2:30 a.m. PST.
There aren't many details about the incident, but reports say Gondrezick-Haskins and Haskins were involved in an argument, and the dispute escalated when she allegedly punched the Steelers' quarterback in the mouth.
Haskins told police he remembered getting into a fight with his wife, but didn't recall getting punched in the mouth.
Given the currently available information, it appears as if Haskins was the victim in this episode. That news originally prompted some Twitter users to photoshop pictures of Haskins with a missing front tooth, along with slinging barbs about his inaccuracy as a passer.
"Man, she got way better accuracy than he does," one user remarked.
While Twitter is thankfully not an accurate reflection of reality, it's still worth pointing out just how wrong this is. Domestic violence is domestic violence, regardless of the victim's gender. In fact, statistics say one in seven men will experience "severe physical violence" by an intimate partner in their lifetime (the average for women is one in four).
"Domestic Abuse is not limited to women," tweeted Joy Taylor of Fox Sports. "Keep the same energy when it's a man who is a victim. It can be extremely difficult for men to talk about physical, emotional, mental, financial and/or sexual abuse because they are met with jokes and judgement. Abusers are wrong, period."
Taylor is absolutely right, and as more time passes, an increasing number of media people are expressing the same viewpoint. On Wednesday, few were making jokes when it was reported that Richard Sherman was arrested for burglary domestic violence.
The same rule should apply here.
The Steelers signed Haskins to a one-year deal in January, and since then, he's handled himself with aplomb. Haskins has taken responsibility for his behavior in Washington and was one of the breakout stars of minicamp — earning adulation from Mike Tomlin and his teammates. After two dreadful years in Washington, Haskins appeared to be on a path towards resuscitating his career.
Here's hoping this episode doesn't derail him. The Steelers declined comment when asked about the report.
Given the tasteless jokes being thrown around Twitter, more people should've done the same.
