There are no winners in this situation involving Josh Brown, his ex-wife and their kids, who had to watch their parents' marriage dissolve.

It's awful, no matter who is telling the truth and who isn't. Everyone loses.

That includes the New York Giants. This is a bad look for the organization, and it didn't have to be a part of its 2016 storyline.

The Giants knew a suspension for Brown was possible the moment their kicker called the team on May 22, 2015, to inform it of his arrest for assault in the fourth degree/domestic violence in Washington state. The charges were later dropped. The NFL suspended Brown on Wednesday for one game for violating the league's personal conduct policy.

Brown was a free agent this offseason. The Giants knew about the arrest for 11 months before signing him to a new two-year deal.

They didn't need to. The Giants could have moved on and looked elsewhere to fill the void. Brown is 37. He's not a part of the franchise's long-term future. In fact, Brown has said for several years he's just trying to get a few more seasons out of the powerful right leg that has made him and his family plenty of money.

As one NFL source said Friday, "I'm surprised the Giants re-signed Josh with all this info out there."

It's hard to argue -- or even understand -- given the ugliness of the allegations. The charges in Washington were dropped because most of the key parties were unwilling to talk with police and/or testify, according to records obtained by ESPN.

Here are the known facts:

• Brown was arrested on a domestic violence charge in 2015. The charge was later dropped.

• The Giants knew about the arrest the day it happened because Brown informed them. The player and team both confirmed this.

• Police were called to the Browns' house on consecutive days in 2015.

• This was not the first time police have been called to a Brown residence. They made two visits to a Hoboken, New Jersey, apartment where the Browns were staying in 2014, according to police.

• There are three kids involved in this situation. Brown and his ex-wife have one child together; she has two children from a prior relationship.

Sound serious enough? You would think that after Ray Rice and Greg Hardy dominated the news cycle for the past two years -- and given the NFL's emphasis on cracking down on domestic violence -- that the Giants wouldn't want anything to do with Brown.

But general manager Jerry Reese re-signed Brown. Ownership signed off on it. Coach Ben McAdoo was left with his foot in his mouth.

McAdoo told The New York Post in a January interview that he wouldn't tolerate domestic violence. Well, Brown was just suspended by the NFL on a domestic violence-related issue.

McAdoo stood by his kicker on Thursday.

"I do support Josh as a man, a father and a player. We treat these situations on a case-by-case basis," he said.

In the 11 months before the NFL handed down a decision, one would hope the Giants did their due diligence. They had to. It took less than 24 hours for me to get my hands on the incident report and the interview Molly Brown had with police that was littered with harrowing allegations. The Giants would've had to be negligently arrogant or foolishly naïve to believe the details would never become public once Josh Brown's case was closed.

Either way, the Giants' decision to associate themselves with Brown has positioned them in negative light, regardless of whether any of the allegations against Brown are true.

Domestic violence is a serious and sensitive issue. And to think, the Giants could've prevented it from hovering over the start of their 2016 season by simply finding a new kicker this offseason.