NFL Did Not View Ray Rice Video Before Public Release, Investigation Concludes

An investigation conducted by a former member of the FBI has determined that the NFL had not viewed the surveillance video of former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice hitting his wife before it was released to the public in September.

Former FBI director Robert S. Mueller conducted the independent investigation, which spanned over four months, to determine if the NFL, particularly commissioner Roger Goodell, had seen the video that showed Rice knocking out then-fiance Janay Palmer in an Atlanta City elevator earlier this year.

The video was released to the public in September 2014, and the NFL, including Goodell, maintained that it had not seen the video prior to its public release. The NFL's claim went against comments made by a local police department that indicated the surveillance video had been emailed to the NFL months before and had been confirmed received.

"We found no evidence that anyone at the NFL had or saw the in-elevator video before it was publicly shown. We also found no evidence that a woman at the NFL acknowledged receipt of that video in a voicemail message on April 9, 2014," Mueller said in a press release Thursday, announcing the conclusion of the investigation.

"We concluded there was substantial information about the incident — even without the in-elevator video — indicating the need for a more thorough investigation. The NFL should have done more with the information it had, and should have taken additional steps to obtain all available information about the February 15 incident," the press release added.