NFL Players Building Strong Relationships with Local Police

There was an article on ESPN.com from the Associated Press titled NFL players concerned about money. Most NFL players are concerned about their money situation, welcome to the reality of your fan base. The players are now responsible for their health insurance and can not work out at team facilities. Players normally do not receive a paycheck in the offseason, they're paid weekly during the season, however those that are due roster bonuses or any other bonuses that may be in their existing contracts won't be receiving those funds. With as tight as the money situation can be some in the NFL don't seem too worried about it, in fact they are willing to waste money on fines and lawyers.

By my count there has been a total of seven players arrested, one player with an arrest warrant out for him and another that had a run in with the law after being ejected from a mall for droopy drawers. Fines have been issued and bonds have been paid but the lawyer fees will add up if and when some of these cases go to court.

There must be something in the 5,000 calorie a day diet of the Eagles offensive linemen. Not sure what because it seems to work okay for their head coach. Two of them have been arrested and charged with crimes. King Dunlap was arrested on Friday, March 4^th in Nashville Tennessee and was booked on charges of reckless driving and disorderly conduct. Dunlap parked his Escalade on a sidewalk and refused to move it when asked to do so by police. The result was a mug shot and a bond set at $1,000.00. Jason Peters was arrested on March 26^th in Shreveport Louisiana . Police stopped Peters because he was in violation of a noise ordinance when his music was too loud in his vehicle; this explains why he can't hear the snap count. Peters proceed to give the police a hard time and refused to show his ID when asked. The result was the same as his backup Mr. Dunlap and Peters got a mug shot and a $628.00 fine.

Let's be quiet Cowboys fans, the boys in star helmets have been stars at the police department as well this offseason. Cornerback Bryan McCann was arrested on March 19^th and charged with public intoxication and spent 8 hours in a Dallas detox center. Dez Bryant was tossed out of the North Park Center , a Dallas area mall, after security asked him and his entourage to pull up their drawers. Bryant refused and became irate, cursing at security claiming he spends a ton of money at the mall and should not be treated like he was being. Mall security had him thrown out and initially banned, but it seems he was later allowed back. With all of that money being spent at the mall it's no wonder he can't pay for his jewelry, two jewelers have issued lawsuits against Bryant for not paying over $800,000.00 he owes to them. "Pants on the ground...pants on the ground...look-in like a fool with your pants on the ground."

Packer's defensive tackle Johnny Jolly continued his run in with the law this offseason. Jolly was arrested in July of 2008 with a 2^nd degree felony charge of possessing 200 grams of codeine. Jolly escaped 20 years of prison time with a year of probation and 160 hours of community service, must be nice to be a pro athlete. In the 2011 version, Jolly was arrested on March 25 when he was pulled over by Houston police. Police discovered not one but two bottles of illegal substances in Jolly's vehicle. One bottle was an unidentified substance; the other was filled with 600 grams of codeine. Jolly was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute. Maybe the judge should have been harder on Jolly the first time he was arrested.

Rounding out the arrests include an array of weapons chargers for three players. Vikings cornerback Chris Cook was arrested on March 12 in Lynchburg , VA for brandishing a handgun in a dispute with a neighbor. He denies that he ever had a gun. Bronco's running back Laurence Maroney was arrested in St. Louis for unlawful weapons charges with added drug charges. Maroney along with five other men were pulled over in St. Louis where police found a total of three guns in their vehicle. Former Oakland offensive lineman and soon to be free agent Mario Henderson was arrested when he was pulled over for loud music. Henderson admitted to the officer that he had a gun in the vehicle without a license to carry or conceal. If I were an NFL player I would consider turning down my radio and sticking to flexing my arms in a bad joke about a gun show.

Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib now has an arrest warrant out for him in Garland Texas . Police issued felony arrest warrants for Talib and his mother for a domestic incident where a gun was fired. Allegedly Talib's sister and her partner got into an argument that grew out of control. She called Talib and their mother for help. Gunshots were heard by neighbors and the police were called. It is alleged that Talib fired the gun and tried to pistol whip his sister's partner. Talib is reportedly going to turn him self in and his bail will be $25,000.00, so much for being worried about money.

It seems as though NFL players have had an increased run in with the law of late. Most of these players are used to structure; they have their lives planned out for them by coaches and trainers. Now with the NFL lockout, some might get bored and may be they don't know what to do or how to act. For players crying foul against NFL owners and claiming to be worried about money when paychecks start being missed in the fall, they seem to not really mind contributing funds to their local police departments. Lawyers will get rich off of the NFL labor dispute and if the lockout stays in place, lawyers will get rich from player run-ins with the law.

Sources:
www.espn.com
www.philly.com
www.foxnews.com
www.aol.sportingnews.com
www.nbcsports.com
www.cbsnews.com
www.msn.foxsports.com