The Minnesota Vikings should be embarrassed, but of course they are not. They should apologize for what has become a lengthy record of their employees stepping outside the boundary of the law, but of course they won't. They should make it an organizational priority to make sure their players walk the straight and narrow, but of course there's no chance of that.
Hey, when you fill a stadium with 64,000 people who don't care about anything except the score on the board, why bother to do the right thing?
Defensive tackle Kevin Williams, an All-Pro and one of the NFL's rising stars, is the latest Viking to have his name written on a police blotter. He was charged with domestic assault for - while drunk - pushing around his wife and tossing her across a bed into a nightstand.
It's the second time in his Vikings' career he's been charged with a crime. Williams was arrested for drunk driving two years ago.
The response from the Vikings? No comment.
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The response from the fans? Just get your sacks, Kevin, and we'll forgive you.
It is shameful.
But what else should we expect from an organization that spawned Arctic Blast, a supposed charity fundraiser that was nothing more than a thinly disguised boozefest that landed the Vikings in hot water after two separate allegations of sexual assault were made a couple of years ago?
Our beloved Vikes, still without a Super Bowl title after more than four decades, have long been an NFL champion of rogue activity.
From Tommy Kramer (drunk driving) to Donald Igwebuike (bankrolling a heroin ring) to Keith Millard (drunk driving, disorderly conduct and more) to Warren Moon (sexual harassment, domestic abuse) to Robert Tate (threatening to have the mother of his child beaten up by a cousin) to Kenny Mixon (not one, not two, but three DWIs) to Randy Moss (bumping a cop with his SUV), the Vikings make as much news with their off-field activity as they do with their game exploits.
If the Vikings played with as much passion as they invest in getting drunk and driving, they'd win the Super Bowl every year.
The team's list of scofflaws includes a couple of dozen more names. And it's not just the players. Sainted former coach and well-known outdoorsman Bud Grant was cited with breaking a federal hunting regulation. Dennis Green faced sexual harassment allegations. Former assistant coach Richard Solomon, a buddy of Green's, faced sexual harassment charges. Current coach Mike Tice was fined heavily by the NFL for scalping Super Bowl tickets.
We'd like to think somebody in the front office would step forward and demand the Vikings clean up their act, but even that might be problematic. The virus infects the paneled offices, too, as former executive Mike Kelly's drunk-driving arrest proved.
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When will it stop? Not any time soon, even though new owner Zygi Wilf has talked about the new family atmosphere surrounding his team. Williams, you see, isn't the only current Viking with issues.
There's running back Onterrio Smith, suspended for the season for using drugs. His last bust, of course, came when he was stopped at an airport wearing a device known as "The Original Whizzinator," used to to mask urine tests.
There is also linebacker E.J. Henderson, who has a drunk-driving arrest and was charged with two since-departed teammates in the beating of a man outside a nightclub.
To their credit, the Vikings recently dumped receiver Kelly Campbell, who was arrested last spring on weapons and drug charges. Not to their credit, the Vikings didn't do it because they were trying to crack down on troublemakers. They did it to make room for another receiver they'd signed.
That receiver was Koren Robinson, a talented young fellow who has a drunken-driving arrest of his own.
Embarrassed? Not this franchise. It knows too well that today's game will be a sellout and Kevin Williams will be cheered lustily when he sacks the quarterback.
That is equally disgraceful.
Forum sports columnist Mike McFeely can be heard on the Saturday Morning Sports Show, 10 a.m.-noon on WDAY-AM (970). He can be reached at (701) 241-5580 or mmcfeely@forumcomm.com
