I know what you mean, that he stood to lose so much just makes it ridiculous and boneheaded as well as deplorable regardless of the circumstances.
The last person who needed to speak about Rice just chimed in: Ray Lewis. That is exactly what Baltimore did not need right now, the guy who much of America think covered up or committed a murder getting involved even if only to say that there is no comparison between him and Rice... actually that is the stupidest thing he could have said short of defending Rice it's far to easy for people to say that Ray just didn't get caught or Ray actually killed a person. A dude like Ray Lewis seriously needs a publicist.
I also think that if it comes out that the NFL saw this video before TMZ released it that Goodell might end up resigning, there's enough football related pressure on him, I'm not sure he'll survive that kind of scandal