Pro Bowl LB Shawn Merriman Arrested
San Diego Chargers star outside linebacker Shawne Merriman was arrested Sunday and accused of choking and restraining his girlfriend, reality TV star Tila Tequila, as she tried to leave his suburban home. Tequila, 27, signed a citizen’s arrest warrant, charging Merriman with battery and false imprisonment, San Diego County Sheriff’s Lt. Gary Steadman said. Deputies responded about 3:45 a.m. to Merriman’s house in Poway, north of San Diego, after a woman called to say she was choked by the player and thrown to the ground when she tried to leave, Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jan Caldwell said at a news conference.
Merriman, 25, was taken into custody and booked into the central jail at about 8:30 a.m. He was released shortly after 11 a.m. Caldwell said she didn’t know if he posted bail or was released on his own recognizance. Tequila was taken to a hospital. Her condition was not immediately available. Tequila, whose real name is Tila Nguyen, is best known for “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila,” which ran for two seasons on MTV. The bisexual dating show featured men and women vying for Tequila’s affections. She has also modeled for Playboy and other men’s magazines. Scott E. Leemon, an attorney for Tequila, said in a statement that neither she nor her representatives would comment publicly on the incident. Merriman’s agent, Tom Condon, said he hadn’t heard about the arrest when contacted by The Associated Press. Merriman was the 12th overall pick out of the University of Maryland in the 2005 draft, and had 39 1/2 sacks in his first three seasons. The three-time Pro Bowl selection was getting back into shape after missing nearly all of last season following knee surgery. The Chargers, picked by some as Super Bowl favorites, open the regular season a week from Monday night at Oakland. Players had been off since after Friday night’s exhibition finale against San Francisco. They are due back at practice on Monday.
“It’s disappointing to hear about the issue involving Shawne Merriman,” Chargers general manager A.J. Smith said in statement. “We’ll continue to monitor the situation and let the legal process run its course.”
Smith didn’t return a call seeking further comment. Smith often speaks of signing “character” players, yet the Chargers have had their share of embarrassing off-field problems in recent seasons. In 2006, there were seven run-ins with the law by San Diego players, including linebacker Steve Foley’s shooting by an off-duty police officer who suspected him of drunken driving. Merriman was suspended four games for testing positive for steroids in 2006, and linebacker Stephen Cooper was suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the 2008 season after testing positive for a banned stimulant. Additionally, Smith reportedly has been unhappy with Merriman’s extracurricular activities. He has various business ventures and is enamored with the Los Angeles social scene. While on injured reserve last year he flew back and forth to Los Angeles once a week to appear on a football preview show.
The NFL’s new Drama Vi-Queen
Favre is statistically one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. Favre is the only player to win the AP Most Valuable Player three consecutive times (1995–97.)[6] He led the Packers to seven division championships (1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2004, and 2007), four NFC Championship Games (1995, 1996, 1997, and 2007), winning two (1996 and 1997), and two Super Bowl appearances, winning one (Super Bowl XXXI).
He holds many NFL records including: most career touchdown passes (464), most career passing yards (65,127), most career pass completions (5,720), most career pass attempts (9,280), most career interceptions thrown (310), most consecutive starts among NFL quarterbacks (269; 291 total starts including playoffs)–just one away from tying the all-time consecutive starts record for any position– and most career victories as a starting quarterback.
This picture says it all. I , along with the rest of the Natioal League Football fans, am getting real tired of the shenanigans Favre has pulled over the last couple years. RETIRE ALREADY…
Burress Sentenced to 2 years in Prison
The news broke yesterday that Plaxico Burress is off to spend two years in prison after carrying a gun in to a nightclub. For 
those of you keeping track at home, two years in prison is the same sentence that Vick got for murdering hundreds of innocent puppies, funding the dog fighting business and acting like a complete idiot. Carrying a gun and killing dogs apparently has the same penalty in the justice system.
Ok, not really. Plaxico’s sentence has much to do with the posturing of his lawyer, whose stall tactics backfired in the worst way possible. It could be worse. The actual penalty for carrying a handgun in New York City is 3.5 years. Plaxico goes from one of the NFL’s best receiver, to a jailbird for the next two years.
Plaxico is already 32-years-old, and by the time he gets out of prison he’ll be 34. To put this in perspective, Hines Ward of the Steelers is 33 and Derrick Mason of the Ravens is 35. Both of those guys are seeing pretty dramatic drops in their ability, and they’ve been consistent mainstays in the league for over a decade. Plaxico will be far from NFL-ready when he crawls out of the sewer pipe in 2011. Vick’s only saving grace is that he’s 29-years-old.
So before we start waxing poetic about whether or not this is fair or not, let’s keep this in perspective. There will be those of you that gripe that “you can’t blame Plaxico because he grew up in harsh times” but if that’s your argument, then I think you need to consider something else.
Don’t these guys play football to get out of the lifestyle that they couldn’t avoid when they were younger? Or is it really that super sweet? It’s not like Burress was going to a freaking house party in Queens. He was going to a club in Manhattan. There’s a stark difference. At one point or another you have to say to yourself: “I’ve had it tough, but now I’m OK…I can leave this crap behind, because if I don’t it could all come crashing down.”
Too many athletes make excuses for their actions and think they don’t have to pay the same consequences that we do. I grew up on the streets of Chicago and have had a lot of experiences that a lot have not, but I don’t make excuses for it, I learned from it and have become a better person through those experiences. Let’s hope prison does Burress good and he becomes a better person because of it.
The Audacity of The Eagles
Michael Dwayne Vick was born June 26, 1980 in Newport News, Virginia. In August 2007, hours after Vick pleaded guilty to federal charges in the Bad Newz Kennels dog fighting investigation under a plea agreement which outlined gruesome details regarding treatment of the dogs, the NFL suspended him indefinitely without pay. In a letter to Vick, Commissioner Roger Goodell said that Vick had admitted to conduct that was “not only illegal, but also cruel and reprehensible”. While Vick is technically a first-time offender under the NFL’s Personal Conduct Policy, Goodell handed down a harsher suspension because Vick admitted that he provided most of the money for the gambling side of the operation. The NFL does not allow its players to be involved in any form of gambling, and even first-time offenders risk being banned for life. However, Goodell did leave open the possibility of reinstating Vick depending on how well he cooperated with federal and state authorities. On August 13, 2009, Vick signed a one year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles. He will earn $1.6 million, of which no amount is guaranteed. The contract also contains a team option for the 2010 season worth $5 million. Vick will be able to participate in all team practices and meetings, as well as the Eagles’ last two preseason games. He will then be eligible for reinstatement in week six at the latest.
With that said, should a professional athlete, who has been convicted of a felony, be able to play sports again? I am all about giving second chances, and if it is coming straight from Michael Vick’s heart that he is sorry for killing hundreds of dogs and leaving numerous more wounded, then he deserves a second chance. But I don’t think it is, The Philadelphia Eagles made him be involved with PETA as a clause in his contract.
