Women Still Proudly Wearing Ray Rice Jerseys After NFL Suspends Him for Domestic Violence

"Although I do not support Ray Rice's actions, I do support him as a person," one fan explained

Ray Rice didn't play in the Baltimore Ravens vs. Pittsburgh Steelers game last night, but his jersey was present at the stadium.

A number of fans showed that they're still sticking by the disgraced NFL player's side amid the controversy surrounding his domestic abuse scandal, but what was even more eye-opening? A lot of these supporters were women.

Females proudly flaunted the No. 27 on their back, and some even held signs during the game that read, "Praying for Ray Rice and your family."

So one obvious question remains—why?!

"Although I do not support Ray Rice's actions, I do support him as a person," Taylor Whitacre, 23, told ABC News. "You can't allow one person's mistake to define the person they are or the potential they have. If we didn't support people even when we don't always care for some of their decisions, a lot of us wouldn't have friends."

Racquel Bailey, a 23-year-old waitress in Baltimore, said, "There's two sides to every story. I saw the video. That's their personal business, and it shouldn't have affected his career. I don't agree with domestic violence, but she's still with him, so obviously it wasn't that big of a deal. Everyone should just drop it."

Sandra Mattocks, a Ravens season-ticket holder, told ESPN that Rice has been condemned and further punished only because of the public outcry that the video stirred. "I have a problem with that. They knew exactly what the facts were when they made [Rice's initial] punishment. I'm very disappointed with the NFL and the Ravens for their treatment of Ray Rice."

"He's still a good guy," Kathi Bessling told The Washington Post. "I just feel like the Ravens are being targeted."

A video showing the 27-year-old brutally beating his then-fiancée Janay Palmer earlier in the year surfaced on the Internet earlier this week. The Ravens announced Monday they are dropping Rice from the team, writing on Twitter, "The #Ravens have terminated RB Ray Rice's contract this afternoon."

In an interview with ESPN, the former Baltimore Ravens running back said, "I have to be strong for my wife. She is so strong…We are in good spirits. We have a lot of people praying for us and we'll continue to support each other." He added, "I have to be there for [Janay] and my family right now and work through this."

The athlete then handed the phone to his wife and she explained, "I love my husband. I support him. I want people to respect our privacy in this family matter."