The Most Bizarre NFL Scandals Of All Time
It can take a lot to break through the media bubble, but some of the most shocking NFL scandals are also some of the most bizarre. These are professional football players or football teams that go out of their way to break the rules both on and off the field.
From dogfighting rings to weird confessions of love during sideline interviews to murders, the NFL has had to deal with it all. In some cases, the matter could be dealt with internally, while others had to involve law enforcement. Nonetheless, these stories are confusing, intriguing, and just down right brutal in some cases.
HeadsetGate
You're going to be seeing the New England Patriots quite a bit on this list. The most recent accusation comes from the Pittsburgh Steelers, who say that they were toying with their headsets during a game at Gillette Stadium.
The Steelers say that their headsets were only receiving New England Patriot broadcasts and they weren't able to talk to themselves. They claim that every time they would ask a league official to come and check it out the broadcasts would magically disappear.
The Infamous Murder Trial
To this day, the O.J. Simpson trial is one of the most talked about trials of all time. Everything from the actual murder to the glove to the white Bronco — they're all iconic symbols that are still brought up today.
Not many were prepared for the conclusion of this case, but Simpson was eventually found not guilty and was set free. The jury acquitted the Hall of Fame running back after eight long months of deliberation.
Ben Roethlisberger's Assault Case
Let's make this clear, Ben Roethlisberger was never charged with sexual assault on either of the cases that were brought again him. The NFL still felt like it was necessary to suspend him for six games anyway.
The six games were reduced to four games, but his reputation in the public and the media had already taken a huge hit. In 2009, a Nevada hotel employee accused the Pittsburgh QB of sexual assault, and a 20-year-old college student says he assaulted her at a club.
BountyGate
This one is bizarre. Well, they're all bizarre, but this one even more so. Basically, players would get cash payouts for injuring specific players from the other team.
Head coach of the New Orleans Saints Sean Payton and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams were both suspended from the league for one year after the league found out about what was going on. The Saints were also fined $500,000 and had their second-round pick in 2012 and 2013 revoked.
The Houseboat Scandal
The Minnesota Vikings "love boat" scandal is just as weird as it sounds. Basically, 17 members of the Vikings rented out two houseboats and flew in prostitutes from Georgia and Florida in 2005.
What happened on that boat was pretty self-explanatory, but pictures ended up leaking and four players from the team were charged with indecent exposure. Two of them got fines for over $40,000. However, no player was suspended from the incident.
Lawrence Taylor's Criminal Activites
It's safe to say that Lawrence Taylor is one of the best defensive players to ever put on a jersey. He made some of the best decisions on the field to help his team get stops.
Unfortunately, the same can't be said about his off-field decision making. He was arrested many times on drug charges and in 2011 he made headline for pleading guilty to sexual misconduct with a 16-year-old girl.
Brett Favre And Jenn Sterger
When Brett Favre went to the New York Jets, it was nothing short of a disaster both on and off the field. First of all, he didn't play anything like a Hall Of Famer, and second of all, his time was riddled with scandal.
Pictures of his genitals ended up all over the internet in 2010. He had allegedly sent them to New York Jets sideline reporter Jenn Sterger. The league had no grounds to discipline Favre, so it was just more of an embarrassment than anything else.
Eugene Robinson's Solicitation
What does an NFL player do just hours before playing in the biggest game of his life? Well, according to Eugene Robinson, you get arrested for soliciting an escort who turned out to be an undercover police officer.
That was the scene for Robinson just before he took to the field at Super Bowl XXXIII. He ended up playing in the game for the Atlanta Falcons, but his errors on the field were widely panned as the reason his team lost.
SpyGate
You're going to see the New England Patriots and Bill Belichick on this list quite a bit. One day before the Pats lost 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII, the Boston Herald reported that the Patriots had taped the Rams' practice the day before.
This is obviously very illegal. Former Patriots video assistant Matt Walsh disclosed the information after the team fired him in 2003. The NFL fined the organization $250,000 and coach Belichick $500,000 and stripped them of their first-round pick.
Eddie Bartolo Jr.'s Suspension
If you're from the area of SanFran or you love the 49ers, you probably have a soft spot for their former owner Eddie Bartolo Jr. He brought a lot to the organization and was probably their most successful owner.
But, he was suspended by the league when he "forgot" to report extortion charges which related to a Louisiana casino. His failure to do so cost him a bunch of money and a suspension from the league. He surrendered the 49ers to his sister.
Janet Jackson And Justin Timberlake's "Mishap"
I don't care what anyone says, this is the most memorable and iconic Super Bowl halftime show of all time. The term "wardrobe malfunction" doesn't even begin to describe what happened.
Singer Justin Timberlake ripped a panel of material from Janet Jackson's top. It exposed one of her breasts on the most watched night of television of the year. Apologies from the singers, outrage from the bible belt, and billions of Google searches followed.
Joe Namath's Weird Kiss
Joe Namath has said some very interesting things during his time with the New York Jets. But, none as interesting as when he drunkenly confessed his love for a reporter on live TV. He literally told Suzy Kolbert that he wanted to kiss her, and well, it was super awkward.
Can someone tell Joe to stop being really creepy to the sideline reporters? I guess he didn't get his name "Broadway Joe" for nothing.
Paul Horung's Betting Scandal
Betting on professional sports isn't a problem. But, betting on professional sports WHEN you're a professional athlete is. Paul Hornung and Alex Karras were both suspended in 1963 after they admitted to betting on NFL games they were playing in.
They were both incredibly celebrated players at the time, and only had to sit out one season before coming back to play. In fact, Hornung was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame.
Rae Carruth's Murder Mystery
Rae Carruth was never really able to live up the expectations that were placed on him when he was drafted high in the NFL draft. He only played three seasons and had four touchdown catches.
He's currently in jail serving 17 years after he was found guilty of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in 2001. He put a hit out on his pregnant girlfriend while they were driving home from the movie theater. The police found out Rae was involved because his girlfriend told police just before she passed.
Denver Broncos Videotaping Scandal
Another day, another videotaping scandal. The 2010 Denver Broncos were accused of videotaping the San Francisco 49ers walkthrough practice before the teams squared off in London, England that year.
Weirdly enough, it was the same video director, Steve Scarnecchia, getting accused of cheating as was in the 2002 Pats scandal. Steve was fired from the team and the Broncos coach, Josh McDaniels, was fined $50,000. The 2002 New England Patriots called, they want their controversy back.
New York Giants Faking Injuries
If you were on the 2011 New York Giants, you never had to worry about how many timeouts you had left because there were more than enough injuries to go around.
One of the more obvious examples was when they were playing against the Rams' no-huddle offense. When it got to the Giants' red zone, TWO Giants players fell after not getting hit and forced a referee to call a timeout. Former Giants players say they were taught to do that. The league issued a warning to the organization.
Mike Tomlin's Kickoff Interference
During a game in November 2013, Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin found himself in a very weird position when he was the final obstacle for a Baltimore Ravens touchdown.
After a kickoff return, the Ravens player was off to the races as he ran down near the sideline. Mike Tomlin was standing at the 38-yard line, basically on the field. The Ravens player had to swerve out of the way to avoid Tomlin, which allowed other Steelers players to catch him. He was fined $100,000 and claimed it was a big mistake.
DeflateGate
This is perhaps one of the biggest scandals to come out of any AFC Championship game. It was discovered that 11 out of the 12 New England Patriots balls were deflated by two-pounds each.
There was a lot of speculation as to why that was. Did Tom Brady like the ball more deflated for better grip? There has been no solid answer on the benefit of having the balls with less air, but nonetheless, it stole headline for a few weeks.
Jovan Belcher's Suicide
When the Kansas City Chiefs linebacker took his own life, it shocked the sports world. Not only did he kill himself, but he also shot his girlfriend in the process.
What makes it even worse is that he murdered his girlfriend and then drove to the Chiefs training facility to shoot himself. His body was taken in for studying and it showed that he had suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) which was a degenerative disease that plagued his brain.
Adrian Peterson's Charges
It was supposed to be a big year on the field for one of the best running backs in the NFL, Adrian Peterson. He was deactivated from the Minnesota Vikings roster in week two after getting charged with reckless or negligent injury to a child.
He was charged for whipping his four-year-old son with a switch. He pleaded "no contest" to a lesser misdemeanor charge of reckless assault. The NFL suspended Peterson.
The Ray Rice Elevator Incident
2014 wasn't a good year for off-field incidents in the NFL. The Baltimore Ravens running back was suspended for two games after he was arrested for assaulting his then-fiancee.
A video shows him knocking her out in an elevator and then dragging her body. Rice was cut by the Ravens and the NFL decided to suspend him indefinitely after the league saw the video and how graphic it was. Commissioner Roger Goodell had to apologize for botching the original two-game suspension.
Dave Duerson's Suicide Note
Before Dave Duerson killed himself, the Pro Bowl safety texted his friends before the incident and told them to have his brain studied for the effects of concussions and head trauma.
Further research revealed that Duerson suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) which is now being diagnosed in more and more NFL players. There have been many lawsuits against the NFL since the death and the league even had to reach a $765 million concussion settlement in 2013.
Stanley Wilson's Super Bowl XXIII Nightmare
Stanley Wilson was supposed to be a huge player for the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XXIII. But, the Bengals ended up having to leave him off the roster because he had a drug relapse the night before the game.
The Bengals ended up losing 20-16, and Wilson was banned from the NFL for life as a three-time drug offender. He claimed that the pressure and intensity of the moment got to him.
Oakland's Barrett Robinson Had A Super Bowl Nightmare As Well
The pressure gets to some people's heads by the looks of it. The day before Super Bowl XXXVII, Oakland Raiders starting center Barrett Robbins went missing. The team couldn't find him anywhere.
Apparently, he had stopped taking his medication and went partying in Tijuana, Mexico. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The Raiders ended up losing 48-21 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Barrett blames himself for the team's loss. He was cut the following season after failing a PED test.
The Dallas Cowboys "White House"
No, we're not talking about the actual White House, this house is MUCH different than that. Several Dallas Cowboys players used a rented house for illicit acts during the team's 1990s heyday.
The partying caught up to star wide receiver Michael Irvin, who had to serve a five-game suspension in 1996 following a no-contest plea to a drug charge. He was able to make a quick recovery and for all we know, got his life back together.
Josh Brent Killing His Teammate
This is tragic. When Josh Brent and his Dallas Cowboys' teammate Jerry Brown got into a car together, they didn't think it'd be the last time they'd see each other. Brent got behind the wheel and was intoxicated.
He ended up crashing the car which killed Brown. Brent was sentenced to 180 days in jail and was charged with DUI manslaughter. He was allowed to rejoin the Cowboys in 2014.
Plaxico Burress's Gun Scandal
It's one thing to accidentally shoot someone else, it's another thing to accidentally shoot yourself. Well, Plaxico Burress did just that. Yes, he accidentally shot himself in a New York City nightclub, which led him to be charged with criminal possession of a handgun.
He served 20 months in prison. The 2008 New York Giants basically unraveled after their star wide receiver was out for the rest of the year. He came back to play in 2009.
Anything Adam "Pacman" Jones Touched
There are just some people who have a knack for getting into trouble. Adam "Pacman" Jones is one of those people. His list of arrests exceeds his career accolades, yet he gets chance after chance in the NFL.
He was involved in a few strip club shootings and became the NFL's poster child for bad behavior. He was suspended for the 2007 and 2008 season because of his constant run-ins with the law.
The Dogfighting Ring
Michael Vick's name has been tainted for life. He's never truly been able to shake the negativity (and rightfully so) that surrounded his dogfighting ring and subsequent jail time.
In 2007, he pled guilty to the federal felony dogfighting conspiracy charge. According to reports, 53 pitbulls that showed signs of injury were found on Vick's property along with 12 deceased dogs. In 2008, he had to file for bankruptcy as he owed creditors nearly $20 million.
Aaron Hernandez's Murder Trial
Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was convicted of first-degree murder for gunning down two people at a South Boston stoplight.
After he was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison, he hung himself. After having his brain tested, it was found that he also had CTE which resulted in his erratic and often violent behavior later in life. He was another former NFL player whose life was ruined by CTE.
