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The NFL is a brutal league and many times on-field injuries cut a career short. But off-field controversies can also end a career prematurely.
Many good and great players have paid the ultimate price as they saw their dreams shattered when a moment or series of misjudgements led to off-field controversies that made their position in the league untenable. Here we look at five such players who had it all with a dream NFL career, only for off-field controversies to ruin it.
Off-field controversies leading to premature end of NFL careers
#5 - Chad Johnson, WR, Miami Dolphins
Chad Johnson is a six-time pro-Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro, hence it almost seems nonsensical to suggest that his career was cut short by injuries. But that was exactly what happened when he headbutted his wife over a disagreement over a box of condoms.
The event happened on August 11 and Johnson was arrested for it. The very next day, on August 12, the Miami Dolphins severed all ties with Chad Johnson. This is a classic example of off-field controversy, as it effectively ended Johnson's NFL career as he got into further trouble for violating his probation. In 2014, he made a return to football in Canada but could not make a mark there.
Also Read: How Much is Chad Johnson’s Net Worth in 2021?
#4 - Rae Carruth, WR, Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers drafted Rae Carruth in the first round of the 1997 NFL Draft. The 1997 rookie season saw him establish himself on the team. In 1998, he missed the season with a foot injury that he picked up in the opening game. In 1999, he returned and was doing well on the field, but off-field controversies reared their head.
Carruth was already paying child support from a previous relationship and wanted his current partner, Cherica Adams, who was pregnant with his child, dead. He enlisted the help of the nightclub manager where she worked, who fatally shot her as Carruth blocked her vehicle with his car. The incident happened in November 16, 1999. Miraculously, the baby was born but Adams died on December 14. Carruth fled but was found on December 15. The Panthers waived him on December 16 and the NFL suspended him indefinitely on December 17.
The baby born in this tragic affair graduated from high school in 2021. Rae Carruth served eighteen years in prison and was released in 2018.
The top 3 career-ending NFL off-field controversies
#3 - Ray Rice, RB, Baltimore Ravens
Off-field controversies notwithstanding, Ray Rice is a Super Bowl champion, two-time All-Pro and three-time pro-Bowler. But in 2014, he was caught on tape having an altercation with his then partner and now wife. They shouted obscenities at each other before Ray Rice decided to punch her in the head, driving her unconscious. He then dragged her out of an elevator in that state.
The sheer brutality of the video shocked watchers and the video proof made it impossible for the league to avoid it. On September 8, 2014, Rice was let go by the Ravens. He was later suspended by the league indefinitely. Even though the suspension was overturned on appeal, such off-field controversies have a way of sticking around, which is why Rice never played in the NFL again.
#2 - Henry Ruggs III, WR, Las Vegas Raiders
The most recent example of off-field controversies bringing a stop to a budding career is that of Henry Ruggs III. He was arrested just this week for driving under the influence and causing the death of a person due to reckless driving. The Las Vegas Raiders have since let him go.
It looks unlikely that he will ever play in the NFL since prison is a realistic possibility given the charges. This is too serious an incident to be dismissed, clubbed with other minor off-field controversies.
#1 - Aaron Hernandez, TE, New England Patriots
The man at the top of the list is former tight end Aaron Hernandez of the New England Patriots. It is a story that is equally harrowing and chilling. While it has been bracketed under off-field controversies, it was much sinster than that.
On June 18, 2013, Hernandez was investigated for murdering his friend Odin Lloyd. On June 26, 2013, he was charged and the Patriots let him go on the same day. While a clear motive was never established, Lloyd was thought to have discovered Hernandez's purported bisexuality. CTE from concussions might also have been a factor.
Hernandez was subsequently sent to prison and committed suicide on April 19, 2017. Insofar as off-field controversies go, there is nothing that can surpass the all-round compound tragedy of this affair.
