NFL Under Arrest

Summer is halfway over, and we are just a few days away from the beginning of NFL Training Camp. We have seen some pretty interesting stuff occur this offseason. We saw free agents fly off the shelves, a top-heavy draft where everybody tried to make moves to trade up for the best players,  ‘Franchise Tag’ drama, the New Orleans Saints’ ‘Bounty Gate’ and the ensuing court battles between Roger Goodell and Jonathan Vilma, not to mention  the 3-Ring Circus otherwise known as the New York Jets.

But at the same time, there was a startling trend this offseason that is even more concerning. Although  it does not involve the Jets or Saints, nearly every other team is affected. The issue is with  the startling number of NFL players who have found themselves in legal trouble, arrested for a variety of charges.

As of July 23rd, there have been 32 sepreate incidents involving NFL players which led to arrests.  Even worse, 14 of those arrests were DUIs/DWIs. Call me stupid but doesn’t the NFL have a special program where if a player has been drinking, regardless of the time and location,  they can get free private transportation just by contacting the league office?

But here are some fun facts for you:

* The team with the most arrests is the Detroit Lions with 4.  

* Out of the 32 players, two of those players were arrested multiple times. For example, the now-former Detroit Lion, Aaron Berry was arrested for a DUI charge on June 23rd and then again on July 21st  for three counts of simple assault after brandishing a firearm.

* Berry’s former teammate, RB Mikel Leshourse was arrested twice in one month for the same charge: marijuana possession. 

* Eight. That’s how many times Titan receiver Kenny Britt has found trouble with the law with since entering the NFL back in 2009.

This past offseason, we've seen Goodell come down hard on the Saints for 'Bounty Gate' and hand out suspensions and fines left and right. Personally, Goodell should just lay off the Saints and pay more attention to these growing arrests. At this rate, we could see an entire 53-man roster wearing orange jumpsuits instead of pads and helmets.

-Ryan L. Fox

---