We're less than 48 hours from Super Bowl 50, but already NFL athletes are making headlines- not for their moves on the field, but for their alleged involvement in domestic-related violence.
Former Denver Broncos running back Montee Ball is the latest to join the list of accused athletes, now facing felony battery charges after an early morning altercation with his girlfriend in a Wisconsin hotel.
Reports say 25-year-old Ball threw his girlfriend into the air, causing her to land on a table, needing stitches.
The NFL, partnering with No More, has released PSAs over the last year speaking up against domestic violence, as more and more athletes end up in the spot light for abuse.
Beatrice Black, executive director of the Women's and Children's alliance in Boise, says she's appreciative of the NFL's recent efforts to shed light on the serious issue.
"I think helping to start the discussion and to help generate awareness is huge, because as far as I'm concerned, when you want to bring light to a problem because you want to help resolve it, the first thing you have to do is bring awareness," Black said.
The league's partnership with No More, is premiering a new domestic violence PSA during this year's big game.
The commercial is roughly 50 seconds, and contains no actors or dialog. Instead viewers tag along through a text message conversation among two girl friends, in which one says she can't make it to the Super Bowl party because her significant other is "in one of his moods", deciding it's best she probably not go out.
Black says this is crucial to the discussion, because there doesn't need to be physical violence for it to be abuse.
"Control over someone's emotions, someone's ability to go see their friends, or someone's ability to even communicate in whatever way they feel comfortable […] does not have to include any physical violence, but that in and of itself is abuse," Black said.
The Women's and Children's Alliance offers assistance 24 hours a day to women in need.
