Cris Carter Apologizes For ‘Fall Guy’ Advice
Cris Carter took to Twitter last night to apologize for advising NFL rookies to make sure to have a “fall guy” on hand in the event that they got involved in a potential crime.
In a presentation at the 2014 NFL Rookie Symposium, ESPN analyst Carter essentially suggested that since the pro athlete is usually paying all the bills for the crew, and as such, the crew “is rolling on [the player’s] bankroll,” someone in that entourage should be the designated patsy if or when the cops show up. In other words, to take the fall, as it were, thereby keeping the high-profile NFL player out of legal trouble.
As widely documented, NFL players often find themselves in off-the-field situations — particularly but not limited to domestic violence — requiring law enforcement intervention.
In the footage that only recently attracted attention and was apparently only a short while go scrubbed from the NFL.com website, Carter went on to tell his audience how important it is to protect a player’s image. He suggested that he knows they are going to be involved in questionable activities, and it is essential that their brands avoid being tarnished, the Inquisitr previously explained.
Warren Sapp, who has had several run-ins with the law, ironically was also on the same stage at the time. See the video embedded below.
According to WEEI’s The Mashup, “The comment came to light after an ESPN the Magazine story published late last week in which former 49er Chris Borland recounts hearing the speech. Said Borland in the article: ‘I was just sitting there thinking, ‘Should I walk out? What am I supposed to do?'”
Inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 2013, Cris Carter apparently experienced second thoughts about the guidance he was offering to the newcomers last year. Via his Twitter account (see below), Carter admitted that he was wrong to give out bad advice and was sorry for the whole fall guy thing.
The NFL issued the following statement about the controversial Cris Carter advice
“This was an unfortunate and inappropriate comment made by Cris Carter during the 2014 NFC rookie symposium. The comment was not representative of the message of the symposium or any other league program. The league’s player engagement staff immediately expressed concern about the comment to Cris. The comment was not repeated in the 2014 AFC session or this year’s symposium.”
Added ESPN, “We completely disagree with Cris’s remarks and we have made that extremely clear to him. Those views were entirely his own and do not reflect our company’s point of view in any way.”
A wide receiver out of Ohio State, Cris Carter spent most of his career with the Minnesota Vikings, bookended by the Philadelphia Eagles (which selected him the 1987 supplemental draft) and the Miami Dolphins. He finished his pro football career with 1,101 receptions, 13,899 receiving yards, and 130 touchdowns.
Seeing that video has made me realize how wrong I was. I was brought there to educate young people and instead I gave them very…
— Cris Carter (@criscarter80) August 24, 2015
bad advice. Every person should take responsibility for his own actions. I’m sorry and I truly regret what I said that day.”
— Cris Carter (@criscarter80) August 24, 2015
Given the tone of his 2014 presentation, do you think that Cris Carter is truly remorseful about advising NFL rookies to roll with a fall guy?
[Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images Sport]
