PHOENIX -- Team president Dick Cass said the Baltimore Ravens don't have a zero-tolerance policy, even though the team released three players this offseason soon after their arrests.
"We have to look at each case individually," Cass told ESPN.com at the NFL owners meetings Monday. "We look at a number of factors and make a decision based on those factors. It's not a zero-tolerance policy at all. We're still going to be willing to take second chances on people if they deserve it. I think it's a mischaracterization to say it's a zero-tolerance policy."
Since the end of the season, the Ravens have cut nose tackle Terrence Cody [animal cruelty charges], cornerback Victor Hampton [driving while impaired charge] and running back Bernard Pierce (drunken driving charge) all within a day of learning of their incidents. This is a change from last offseason, when the Ravens didn't immediately release any of the five players arrested.
Cass said team officials discussed in January how they were going to address off-the-field incidents this year.
"We're not going to be afraid to release somebody if we think that's justified," Cass said. "When it gets to the point where negatives outweigh the positives, we will release a player."
All three players released this offseason were backups and weren't guaranteed of making the season-opening roster. Would the Ravens act the same way if it were a more prominent player?
"Depending on the severity of the alleged offense, it could apply to a starter," Cass said. "Each case will be different."
The Ravens have had nine members of their organization arrested over the past 13 months, which began with the Ray Rice scandal. General manager Ozzie Newsome said last month that the team will avoid signing and drafting players with any domestic violence incidents in their past.
Ravens officials recently described last year's number of arrests as "an aberration" after having little off-the-field trouble in coach John Harbaugh's first six seasons. That's why the Ravens have said they are taking this year's incidents seriously.
"It's very disappointing and very frustrating," Cass said. "Obviously, the number of arrests we've had, we need to re-examine everything we're doing to see if we can do something better. That's what we're trying to do as well."