Have you noticed something about the NFL Conduct Policy this year? Maybe how, it’s working – masterfully, in fact?

Players are not going to stop getting in trouble – human nature won’t allow it. Any collection of 1,600 young adult males is going to have a few bad apples. (Numbers show that the NFL actually has fewer bad apples than American society on average, if we are to believe the arrests numbers.) But what the NFL Conduct Policy has done is empowered, or coerced, teams into reprimanding their own problem children.

We have seen an unprecedented amount of team-issued discipline handed down this season. Individual clubs have taken the initiative to clean up any messes that arise. And it’s not just about players who get in legal trouble; proverbial head cases have felt the iron fist, as well. Take a look at all the team-issued discipline this season. You’ll notice that ALL of the players listed below are guys who have had cloudy reputations in the past.

New York Giants, Plaxico Burress – suspension

The defending World Champions have discovered that their foundation is stronger than their individual parts – including the talented yet roguish 6’5” wide receiver. The Giants suspended Burress for a game earlier this year after he skipped a Monday meeting. They also benched him in the first quarter of last Sunday’s contest at Pittsburgh after he failed to show up for a treatment on his neck.

New York Giants, Jeremy Shockey – traded

The Giants first came to realize that they could survive – nay, thrive – without some of their narcissistic stars when they made their Super Bowl run while the Pro Bowl tight end was out with a broken leg. Shockey’s reclusive behavior during the offseason, and derisive outburst at GM Jerry Reese in training camp, eventually got him traded.

Kansas City Chiefs, Larry Johnson – benched

Four times in five years the star running back has been accused of assault on a woman (usually at a nightclub). Factor in his sporadic whining and moping and it becomes easy to see why the Chiefs have gotten fed up. Herm Edwards has inactivated Johnson for each of the past two games. This ordeal may not be finished; on Tuesday, Johnson went to New York and met with Roger Goodell. To the running back’s credit, he has publicly owned up to his latest mistake and has acknowledged a need for significant changes in his life.

Pittsburgh Steelers, Santonio Holmes – suspended

The Steelers chose to face arguably the best team in football last week without their leading receiver and most dynamic offensive threat. Why? Earlier in the week, Holmes was stopped by police and admitted to having marijuana in his possession. This was the young wideout’s third run-in with the law since being drafted. Holmes has publicly apologized for the incident, though don’t be shocked if he too winds up meeting with Goodell at some point.

Dallas Cowboys, Pacman Jones – disowned

Maybe we shouldn’t give Jerry Jones too much credit here. After all, he’s the one who traded for Pacman while the cornerback was still suspended. But when the troubled star blew his golden opportunity – 10,000^th second chance – by getting into a fight with his own team-appointed bodyguard, the NFL suspended him indefinitely. And the Cowboys organization all but said goodbye. Jerry Jones made it public knowledge that Pacman was entering alcohol rehab and emphasized that it was the NFL’s doing. The owner also admitted to never thinking about the possibility of Pacman screwing up with the very guys hired to prevent him from screwing up.

Indianapolis Colts, Ed Johnson – released

Few Indianapolis defensive tackles have been as good as Ed Johnson, the team’s undrafted rookie sensation a year ago. But that wasn’t enough to convince the Colts to keep Johnson after he was arrested for speeding and possession of marijuana. Although his record had been clean as a Colt, Johnson’s previous character issues – which were what had scared teams away on Draft Day – were enough to punch his ticket out of town.

Cleveland Browns, Kellen Winslow – Benched

The hotheaded tight end spouted off about how the organization did not care about him, and how they told him not to publicly disclose his staph infection. The Browns refuted the accusations, then promptly suspended Winslow for a game (after he met with team officials, the suspension was replaced with a $25,000 fine, which meant Winslow got to keep his $235,294-plus game check). Still, he stayed home when the Browns traveled to Jacksonville.

Carolina Panthers, Steve Smith – suspended

You can set your watch by it: every few years, Steve Smith loses his mind and sucker punches a teammate (remember the incident with Stephen Davis?). This time, the victim was cornerback Ken Lucas, who reportedly was sitting in a defenseless position when Smith attacked him. The Panthers drew headlines for suspending the volatile star for the first two games. Carolina won both, Smith and Lucas have since made nice and all appears to be well.

San Francisco 49ers, Vernon Davis – Ejected

Mike Singletary had likely been stewing about the young tight end all season. It wasn’t until Singletary was promoted from defensive coordinator to interim head before he felt comfortable doing something about it. What he did was send Davis to the locker room after the former first-round pick seemingly mailed it in during the second half of a pitiful loss against Seattle. After the game, Singletary lambasted Davis in a press conference that, by now, you’ve seen at least three or four times.