Ok, so I didn't exactly "predict" that Britt would get his act together, but lo and behold, as soon as I have something nice to say about him, he goes and get's arrested. Twice in the course of about three days no less. So this now poses a whole new set of questions. Do we cut ties with our talented superstar in the making or do we just suspend him? Neither? Will there be league-sanctioned fines? If so, how severe given his recent history of being an idiot?
While it looks complex, we can easily over-simplify it by saying that someone needs to do something right now. Easy, right?
Of course, the question now is what exactly we're going to do.
Try and guess who this is for me:
"I have used, you know, marijuana ... since I've been in the league," X said in an interview for HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel" scheduled to air Tuesday night. "But as far as abusing it and, you know, letting it take control over me, I don't do that, no."
When pressed whether he still smokes marijuana, the star receiver with the checkered past said: "I might. I might have fun. And, you know, hopefully ... I won't get into any trouble by the NFL by saying that, you know. I have had fun throughout my years and, you know, predominantly in the offseason.
If you didn't know better, you'd think this were our very own Kenny Britt talking. However, you may be surprised (probably not though) to know that this is Randy Moss speaking on his drug usage since entering the league. Randy Moss has also never been suspended by the NFL for drug use. Ever. I hope Jerry Jones still regrets that one to this day and never lives it down.
In any case, Britt has had numerous, albeit minor, run-ins with the law, much like a young Randy Moss did. But Randy turned out ok, so it must be fine, right? Wrong. Considering that Moss has never been fined or suspended for using drugs, (which is weird considering he uses it, however infrequently.) I figured that the NFL has a fairly lenient drug policy. I guess it could be considered lenient, but even a second time offense warrants a fine.
The NFL's drug policy calls for up to 10 tests a month after one positive result. A second violation results in a fine equal to the player's salary for four games, a third in a four-game suspension, and a year's suspension for a fourth violation.
So now that he's been accused of destroying evidence, namely a marijuana cigar, does this mean that he's on strike two? Kenny, I think I speak for all of us when I say what you do on your own time is your business alone, but at least have the situational awareness to not get caught blazing at a car wash or whatever it was.
However, this would be a much easier situation to stomach if it were just the weed he was busted for. As is the custom, Britt was nabbed on traffic charges the first time. His rap sheet is growing folks. Let's check Britt's record since joining the TItans:
- In January of 2010, he allegedly pledged to post bail for a friend, but never followed through He was initially charged with theft-by-deception, but had the offense downgraded to a misdemeanor.
- Last October, he was apparently involved in a bar room fight. Charges were never pressed, but it was still a little disconcerting to see him out and about the night before a game.
- Last August, he received a misdemeanor citation for driving with a revoked license. His license was originally suspended because of an arrest for outstanding traffic warrants. C'mon man...
- Oh, and he was in a car chase.
- These last charges have been downgraded from felony as well.
From where I'm standing, he's been incredibly lucky to get off like he has without any serious consequences. Let's just bite the bullet here folks, no matter how winnable these first four games are, Kenny Britt must be suspended from the team and fined by the league office for repeated transgressions.