Over the past few months, an ever-growing number of sports organizations have downplayed the significance of domestic violence. Now, ESPN has added itself to that list.

On Wednesday night, the network suspended popular basketball analyst Bill Simmons for three weeks after he called NFL commissioner Roger Goodell a liar over whether he knew about the in-elevator tape of Ray Rice striking his then-fiancée. Here’s what Simmons said on his podcast:

I just think not enough is being made out of the fact that they knew about the tape and they knew what was on it. Goodell, if he didn't know what was on that tape, he's a liar. I'm just saying it. He is lying. I think that dude is lying. If you put him up on a lie detector test that guy would fail. For all these people to pretend they didn't know is such f------ b-------. It really is — it's such f------ b-------. And for him to go in that press conference and pretend otherwise, I was so insulted. I really was.

Simmons went on to challenge ESPN to suspend him for his comments. “I really hope somebody calls me or emails me and says I'm in trouble for anything I say about Roger Goodell,” he said. “Because if one person says that to me, I'm going public. You leave me alone. The commissioner's a liar and I get to talk about that on my podcast ... Please, call me and say I'm in trouble. I dare you.” ESPN’s justification for suspending Simmons was vague, simply saying that he did not meet ESPN’s “journalistic standards.” Presumably, they did not approve of Simmons calling the NFL commissioner a liar.

Is he a liar? That’s still unclear, but there is strong evidence that might be the case. Goodell has adamantly denied that the NFL knew the contents of the tape before TMZ released it on September 8. But last week, Don Van Natta and Kevin Van Valkenburg reported for ESPN that "Rice told Goodell that he hit her and knocked her out, according to four sources.” It’s of course possible that those four sources are either lying or have the story wrong. But Simmons was just saying what the evidence seems to indicate. Is that really in violation of ESPN’s standards? In fact, on Tuesday, ESPN’s ombudsman praised Simmons for his comments, including it in part of the “strong coverage and commentary” from the network.

What’s worse, Simmons suspension is three times as long as ESPN suspended Stephen A. Smith in July after Smith, in talking about the Rice incident, argued that women should not provoke men into domestic violence. That’s a very clear signal of the network’s priorities.