NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell / Photo: Newscom

• “The conduct reflected in your guilty plea resulted in the tragic loss of life and was inexcusable. While the criminal justice system has determined the legal consequences of this incident, it is my responsibility as NFL Commissioner to determine appropriate league discipline for your actions, which have caused irreparable harm to the victim and his family, your club, your fellow players and the NFL.”
• “The conduct that led to your conviction plainly violates both the Personal Conduct and Substances of Abuse policies. Either provides me with full authority to take appropriate disciplinary action against you, including a fine or suspension without pay, and to impose appropriate conditions on your continued participation in the NFL. In this case, there is ample evidence to warrant significant discipline under both policies.”
• “There is no reasonable dispute that your continued eligibility for participation at this time would undermine the integrity of and public confidence in our league. Accordingly, I have decided to suspend you indefinitely, effective immediately. In due course, we will contact your representatives to schedule a meeting with you, after which I will make a final determination on discipline. Pending my final determination, you will not be permitted to visit the club’s facility or participate in any team activities.”
• “Everyone associated with the league derives tremendous benefits from participating in our game and from the extraordinary support we receive from the public. With these benefits comes, among other things, the responsibility to conduct ourselves in a lawful and responsible way, with no entitlement to or expectation of favorable treatment.”

Under NFL policies, all NFL employees recognize that alcohol-related violations of law will not be tolerated and that they will be held accountable over and above any sanctions imposed by a court of law. This accountability to the NFL for alcohol-related violations of law includes discipline in the form of major fines and suspensions without pay. The level of discipline is significantly increased in cases involving aggravating circumstances and/or repeat offenses.

In addition to a comprehensive testing and treatment program for substance abuse, the NFL and NFL Players Association have extensive education and prevention resources available to players and all other league and club employees. One of those resources is a “safe rides” program used by most clubs to provide players and other employees with alternative means of transportation if they have consumed alcoholic beverages. Commissioner Goodell notified all clubs earlier this year that there will be increased emphasis on addressing DUIs and other misconduct.

Source: NFL Media

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Roger Goodell’s Letter to Donte’ Stallworth

Donte' Stallworth, Cleveland Browns / Image: Zuma Press

Cleveland Browns GM General Manager George Kokinis made the following statement:

“The Browns are very conscious of the seriousness of the charges to which Donte’ Stallworth plead guilty to today. We are continuing to evaluate the situation and will make the decisions that we believe are in the best interest of the Cleveland Browns.”

Some people will say this punishment is not enough. But in Donte’s defense, he had an excellent pre-accident history of community service, plenty of references that attested to his good character, no traffic violations or criminal convictions, a complete post-incident cooperation with law enforcement, and a willingness to accept complete responsibility for his actions. Therefore, the terms of the plea were agreed upon between the State Attorney’s office and the police. And the Reyes family was in agreement. Obviously, no sentence can bring Mario Reyes back to his family. But the idea is that this plea deal will provide them some kind of closure as a just punishment.

Bringing football back into the equation, I wonder how NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will rule in this matter? I do know he will make a decision before training camp. And if the price is similar to what Leonard Little paid (on a guilty plea of involuntary manslaughter after killing someone while driving drunk in 1998), it will be an eight game suspension.

Source: ClevelandBrowns.com

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Donte’ Stallworth Pleads Guilty

Donte’s blood-alcohol level after the crash was .126, well above Florida’s legal limit of .08, according to results of a blood test. If convicted, he would face a maximum 15-year prison sentence. The Browns released the following statement today:

“The charges levied against Donte’ Stallworth are very serious and we are disappointed he has put himself in this position. We are saddened by the circumstances that have taken place and our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Mario Reyes. We have been in communication with the Commissioner, who is reviewing the situation under league policies, and we will withhold further comment at this time.”

As I said before, there’s nothing good I can pull out of this and I hate writing about it. I don’t like looking at that headline. It’s a terrible tragedy for everyone involved and the whole thing makes me heartbroken for everyone involved. I guess the message continues to be that you simply cannot drive when you’ve been drinking. In Donte’s case, the ultimate cost was another man’s life. Plus it could destroy his very promising football career and cause him to lose his freedoms for the next 15 years of his own life.

Donte’ is expected to surrender in court tomorrow and then will be released on $200,000 bail. According to court documents, he will be prohibited from driving while on bail and he won’t be allowed to drink alcohol. He also must observe a 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and submit to random alcohol and drug testing through the NFL’s substance abuse program.

Source: ClevelandBrowns.com, Photo: Newscom

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Donte’ Stallworth: DUI Manslaughter

Cleveland Browns receiver Donte Stallworth was legally drunk when his vehicle struck and killed a man on the MacArthur Causeway in Miami Beach, FL last weekend. Donte reportedly had a blood alcohol level of .14 (the legal limit is .08) when he had his blood tested after the accident occurred. The Browns released the following statement on Donte’s behalf yesterday:

“My family and I are grief stricken over the tragic accident which occurred Saturday on Miami Beach where Mario Reyes sadly lost his life. My thoughts and prayers are with the Reyes family during this incredibly difficult time. Unfortunately, since this accident is still under police investigation, I cannot comment further at this time.”

What I can say is that these test results don’t look good for Donte’s future because he could be facing DUI manslaughter charges if he’s found guilty. I wish there was something positive I could drag out of this nightmare, but there’s just nothing there. It’s a terribly sad situation all the way around.

Sources: CBS4.com, ClevelandBrowns.com

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Donte Stallworth Over Legal Limit

Cleveland Browns receiver Donte Stallworth hit and killed a pedestrian with his Bentley this morning in Miami. The accident occurred on a busy causeway linking Miami and Miami Beach. According to Miami Beach police spokesman Juan Sanchez, the man that was hit was a 49-year-old white male. He was taken to a nearby trauma center where he was pronounced dead about an hour after the accident. Donte has cooperated fully with the investigation and no charges have been filed yet. The police did draw blood to test for drugs and/or alcohol, but that is standard practice in a situation like this. It was also undetermined if Donte violated any traffic laws. Meanwhile, back in Cleveland, the Browns released the following statement:

“We understand the seriousness of this situation, but will not have any further comment at this time as this is an ongoing investigation.”

Donte went from great joy to ultimate sadness in less than 24 hours. Just yesterday, he received a $4.75 million signing bonus on his seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns — this despite an awful 2008 season (17 catches, 170 yards). He spent most of last year hobbled by a hamstring injury. This morning, as he was headed for the beach, tragedy ended his plans.

Source: NFL.com

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Donte Stallworth Kills Man With Car

Blogcasting the National Football League, Blogcasting the NFL

The Cleveland Browns are doing more than staying competitive this offseason. The Browns are preparing themselves for a Super Bowl run. First, they locked up QB Derek Anderson for three-years yesterday. Then they got him another weapon on offense — former New England Patriots WR Donte Stallworth. The Browns are wisely building their team around their quarterbacks — Derek and Brady Quinn. GM Phil Savage said:

“Donte’ will be the major addition to our offense this year. He will bring legitimate speed, quickness and playmaking ability to the receiving corps and add a different dimension to the skill players we already have in place.”

He’s not kidding. Combining Donte with Braylon Edwards, Jamal Lewis, Kellen Winslow, Josh Cribbs, and Joe Jurivicius gives Cleveland a serious upgrade to the NFL’s already eighth-best offense (2007).

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Donte’ Stallworth Agrees to Deal With Browns

Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL

With free agency just hours away, I still can’t believe the New England Patriots don’t have a deal in place for wide receiver Randy Moss. His record-setting 2007 more than earned him the right to have been signed to a long-term deal by the Pats. He kept his nose clean and was a leader and good teammate. He’s Tom Brady’s favorite target. What more needs to be said? I feel like as soon as I publish this, news will break of his signing … with the Patriots. Still, New England has a lot to consider. They have a slew of free agents and have the difficult task of deciding who they can keep. Remember, this was an 18-1 team last season. A roster overhaul isn’t really an ideal game plan. Who am I to question the mighty Patriots, though. They seem to find a way to make it work.

It’s always easy to assume the teams with the most money to spend will do the most spending in free agency. But what each team must do is look at their needs and decide what holes can be filled best in free agency or the upcoming Draft. And for those teams without a lot of cash to spend, it doesn’t mean they won’t be active. Obviously they have fewer options, but if there’s a player out there they want, they’ll do what they have to to get after him.

Here are my Top 10 free agents heading into tomorrow’s free-for-all:

1. Randy Moss, WR, Patriots
2. Michael Turner, RB, Chargers
3. Alan Faneca, G, Steelers
4. Lance Briggs, LB, Bears
5. Asante Samuel, CB, Patriots
6. Marion Barber, RB, Cowboys
7. Justin Smith, DE, Bengals
8. Bernard Berrian, WR, Bears
9. Tony Richardson, FB, Vikings
10. Derek Anderson, QB, Browns

Other players I really like (in no particular order) are Daunte Culpepper (QB, Raiders); Chris Brown (RB, Titans); Jerry Porter (WR, Raiders); Ernest Wilford (WR, Jags); Donte Stallworth (WR, Patriots); Jesse Chatman (RB, Dolphins); Julius Jones (RB, Cowboys); Atari Bigby (DB, Packers); and Lorenzo Neal (FB, who was released by the Chargers) and DeShaun Foster (RB, who was released by the Panthers). There are a lot of good players that will be available soon.

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Randy Moss Leads Top 10 NFL Free Agents

For the second consecutive day, New England Patriots QB Tom Brady was missing from practice and the open locker room sessions. And his teammates and coaches are covering for him. WR Donte Stallworth joked that he would be subbing for Tom and running the option. Head coach Bill Belichick avoided the subject — with a smile. The fact that they are being so trivial with this tells me it’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure Tom’s just doing what’s necessary to be 100% for the Super Bowl in nine days. But if he’s not practicing with the team in Arizona next week, then it’s time to start being concerned.

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Tom Brady Missing From Patriots’ Practice

I hate to say “I told you so,” but … the pregame hype between 5-0 New England and 5-0 Dallas wasn’t all it was built up to be as the Patriots hammered the Cowboys 48-27 today. Of course, I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who felt this way, but my pregame prediction turned out to be reality — Dallas is a good team, New England is an elite team.

Dallas will win their share of games this season. They have too much talent not to. I won’t go so far as to say they’re the best team in the NFC, but they’re certainly in the top three right now and they might be the best before all is said and done. And I have to admit, when the Cowboys took a 24-21 lead in the 3rd quarter, I was a little concerned that an upset was brewing. I hate predicting games and pretending like I’m some kind of expert (because I’m far from it), but my gut told me the Cowboys couldn’t keep up with Tom Brady and friends. As it turns out, Tom finished the day with career numbers. His five TDs were his best ever.

As far as the battle of 81s — “the Original 81″ vs. “the other 81″ — the final stats were nearly identical, but Randy Moss had more of an impact on this game because of the attention he drew from the Dallas defense. Second and third WRs Donte Stallworth and Wes Welker combined for 18 catches and 260 yards in Randy’s shadow. It’s impossible to defend the Patriots. You simply pick your poison. Which way do you want to get beat?

As New England improves to 6-0 (with a five-game lead in the AFC East), I can’t help but look ahead to November 4 when the Patriots travel to Indy to take on the currently (also) undefeated Colts who were on a bye this weekend. This game will deserve as much hype as people want to give it. Mark your calendar because this will be your Super Bowl. There are two elite teams in the NFL and November 4 is the day they meet.

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Patriots Crush Cowboys 48-27, Tom Brady Throws Career High Five TDs in Win

A day after signing high-profile free agent WR Donte Stallworth away from the Philadelphia Eagles, the New England has signed another free agent wide receiver, this time former Cincinnati Bengal Kelley Washington, a former teammate of Stallworth’s in college at Tennessee. The Patriots gave Washington a five-year deal worth up to $22 million, including a $300,000 signing bonus. This deal is similar to the one that Stallworth signed. It contains a $4 million roster bonus payment that the Patriots will have to decide whether they want to pay in 2008. Like Stallworth, the financial incentive is there for Kelley Washington. I’ve always been intrigued by him since he was so highly touted coming out of Tennessee. I still remember his 2001 game against LSU when he had 11 catches for 256 yards. Yow. He was an underachiever and injury-prone in Cincinnati, hobbled by a bad hamstring much of last season. But he produced some decent numbers in 44 games — 72 receptions, 12.4 yards per catch, nine TDs. As with any other player that brings a team-first attitude to New England, the sky is the limit. Kelley Washington could finally realize his true potential here. If he can stay healthy. I’ll reiterate yesterday’s prediction. The Patriots are my early choice to win Super Bowl XLII.

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Patriots Continue WR Overhaul