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Josh Brown Releases Statement Defending Character and Integrity of New York Giants, Gets Cut Anyway

Kicker Josh Brown apologized to the Giants. Then they released him.
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

New York Giants kicker Josh Brown has drawn a great deal of negative press as his lengthy history of spousal abuse has come to light over the past few months, including last week when the Kings County Sheriff's Office released notes from his personal journal in which he admitted to abusing his wife, Molly. Brown decided to get his own message out there on Tuesday by releasing a statement to the media.

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ESPN's Adam Schefter posted Brown's statement on his Facebook account:

"I am sorry that my past has called into question the character or integrity of The New York Giants, Mr. Mara or any of those who have supported me along the way. I have taken measures to get help so that I may be the voice of change, not a statistic. It is important to share that I never struck my wife, and never would. Abuse takes many forms, and is not a gray area. Through the past several years I have worked to identify and rectify my own behaviors. The road to rehabilitation is a journey and a constant modification of a way of life. My journey will continue forever as a person determined to leave a positive legacy and I embrace the opportunities to show and speak about what has helped me to be that man. In the interim, I am cooperating with the Giants and the NFL. Thank you to everyone that has supported me, I will not let you down.

-Josh Brown"

It might seem weird that Brown used his first sentence to apologize for doing harm to the character and integrity of a football team, but then you get to the second sentence and it all starts to make sense. The "I don't want to be just another statistic" line usually comes from the abused, not the abuser, but Brown, you'll recall, thought of himself as "God" and Molly his "slave." Self-obsession aside, he makes a big show of appreciation toward the Giants and owner John Mara for supporting him because they very much did.

Heading into the weekend, the kicker was suspended indefinitely…with pay, of course. Roger Goodell did the Giants a solid by placing Brown on the Commissioner's Exempt List, which allowed them to sign kicker Robbie Gould without sacrificing a roster spot. And so Brown is cooperating with the NFL and the Giants, and the NFL is cooperating with the Giants, who continue cooperating with Brown.

With all that cooperating out of the way now, the Giants released Josh Brown.