A knockout to the NFL’s reputation?: A case study of the NFL’s crisis communications strategies in response to the Ray Rice scandal

Abstract

The NFL was largely criticized for its mishandling of the Ray Rice controversy in 2014. This study identifies crisis communication strategies that both followed and deviated from established research-based models. Further, the study evaluates whether and how these response strategies were mismatched with the perceived level of crisis responsibility as predicted by theory. The results of this case illustrate the consequences of mismatching crisis communications strategies with perceived crisis responsibility. This study demonstrates the need for scholars to identify and study potential buffering factors that can shield organizations from short-term consequences of a crisis. Moreover, it suggests that researchers need to better understand the cumulative effect of negative reputation and crisis history that can accrue over time.