New York Jets Are Trippin': Sal Alosi Resigns, but Has Justice Been Served?

Who among us can say they are perfect?

Sal Alosi can’t. But he isn’t alone.

After all, part of what makes us human is the fact that all of us will inevitably make mistakes. Life isn’t so much about the mistakes that we make, but more about the lessons we learn from those mistakes.

Thus will be the case for Alosi, who resigned as the Jets strength and conditioning coach yesterday after tripping a Miami Dolphins player seven weeks ago.

During the Jets' Week 14 loss to the Dolphins, Alosi was seen standing among five inactive players as they formed a human wall along the sideline while the Dolphins were covering a punt. Alosi then tripped Dolphins player Nolan Carroll as he ran by, causing Carroll to fall down. Carroll was shaken up for a moment, but was able to walk off the field under his own power.

It was later revealed that Alosi had ordered the Jets players to form the wall along the sideline. Head coach Rex Ryan and special teams coach Mike Westhoff denied having any knowledge of the situation, and said that they never told Alosi to instruct the players to make the wall.

The controversy came to an end yesterday, when Alosi decided to resign from his position with the Jets, citing his desire for a fresh start for himself and his family.

But was justice served?

Following the incident, Alosi was suspended by the Jets and fined an additional $25,000 by the team, which means that in total Alosi lost about $50,000 because of his actions.

The Jets were also fined $100,000.

In addition to embarrassment, Alosi found himself under more scrutiny than he probably ever imagined. That scrutiny and embarrassment likely weighed heavily in to his decision to resign from his job, leaving him temporarily unemployed.

There is also the question of whether this issue was magnified because Alosi was a member of the Jets organization. There was video evidence of Carolina Panther defensive end Tyler Brayton hitting the Atlanta Falcons Chris Owens while he was running down the sideline covering a punt the same week. That story made brief headlines, but was never talked about again.

Brayton was only fined $15,000 for the incident by the NFL. 

The Jets were seemingly in the spotlight all season, much of which they brought upon themselves. Their loud-mouth ways caused a lot of resentment from other teams as well as many fans. That resentment is likely one of the reasons that so many people called for such a harsh punishment. I didn’t see too many people calling for Brayton to be banned from the NFL.

Did you?

It was amazing to me to see the reactions of fans and players alike.  Many of them called for Alosi to be fired. Regardless of what he did, what gives someone the right to call for another person to be fired, especially in these hard economic times? Would those same people like it if others called for them to be fired from their jobs if they made a mistake? 

I understand the magnitude of what Alosi did. He put another man’s health and playing career at risk with his senseless actions. He tried to gain a competitive advantage, but went too far and crossed the line. He made a very big mistake, but a mistake nonetheless.

Mistakes are a part of life, but they do not define a person, and Alosi's situation is no different. People have been forgiven and given a second chance after doing far worse.

For anyone else to believe that they are above mistakes would be pure ignorance.

Alosi lost a lot of money and ultimately his job because of what he did. If justice hadn’t already been served with the suspension and fine, it certainly has been now.

Only someone who is perfect could say that justice has still yet to be served and that Alosi deserves further punishment.

Fortunately for Alosi, as well as the rest of us, such a person does not exist.