Ultraviolet, a national women’s rights group, is calling for major sponsors to drop their affiliation with Peyton Manning after controversial information resurfaced from his involvement in a sexual assault case in 1996 while at the University of Tennessee.
The group, which also requested that Roger Goodell get fired after the Ray Rice debacle in 2014, is chomping at the bit to have Manning’s high profile endorsements including Papa John’s and Nationwide Insurance take a hit, per an ESPN report.
Nita Chaudhary, the group’s co-founder, issued a statement in a press release condemning Manning and any sponsors that choose to support him:
“When institutions like the University of Tennessee tacitly condone violence against women by ignoring cases of sexual assault by student-athletes, it perpetuates a dangerous culture of violence that ultimately hurts women everywhere.
While it is outrageous that the University of Tennessee chose to turn a blind eye to sexual violence by student athletes like Manning, it would be flat out unacceptable for the NFL and major companies like Nationwide Insurance and Papa John’s Pizza to continue to stand with Manning in light of emerging evidence.
Nearly a week after the Shaun King/New York Daily News story dropped, Manning has yet to say a word.
If he loses a sponsor or two, Manning’s hand might be forced to speak up. Manning hasn’t hit Manny Pacquiao levels from his sponsors yet but he is getting closer the longer he doesn’t say something.
As for the NFL, if he retires and goes gently into the night, the NFL’s involvement in this situation may become non-existent.
Categories: Peyton Manning
I do think his endorsement days are over, but if I remember correctly, he seems to be interested in being a GM for an NFL team someday, so having the image of a Phil Simms or Troy Aikman won’t be so relevant to what he does.