I have no sympathy for Ray Rice. That said, is this incident with his former fiancée, now wife, the first domestic violence case in which he has been involved? If so, how does the NFL get away with an “indefinite” suspension when its new rules call for a 6-game suspension for first offenses? This is especially true given that the incident occurred before the rules were even devised.
Rice's suspension from the NFL will probably be exactly six games. But because his contract was terminated by the Ravens, he's basically "suspended" until another team is willing to sign him -- which will probably never happen.
The problem with the NFL is that players have absolutely zero leverage. There's really no alternative professional league for them to play in, like you have in basketball, hockey or soccer.