A new book co-authored by Don Yaeger and Jeff Benedict
titled, "Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play In The NFL,"
"details a variety of criminal acts and their adjudication
and decries what the authors see as a league denial,"
according to USA TODAY's Larry Weisman. Using the '96 NFL
rosters and the '97 draftees, Yaeger and Benedict compiled
the criminal allegations using public arrest records,
researching individual court dockets and databases and
contacting police departments. They "contend that more than
one in five NFL players has been charged with a serious
offense, often more than once, but continue to enjoy
lucrative careers." Benedict previously authored, "Public
Heroes, Private Felons," which detailed reported abuses by
college players. Yaeger, who writes for SI, and wrote about
Notre Dame football in "Under The Tarnished Dome," said the
database he put together "probably under-reports the number
of actual offenders." Yaeger: "We don't think you ban
people the first time they do anything from earning a
living. But there's no question the NFL needs to do
something." NFL VP/Communications Greg Aiello disagrees
with how the players are portrayed by the book: "This is a
second attempt by [Benedict] to unfairly stereotype and
stigmatize athletes. There are approximately 2,500 players
going through our league each year and fortunately the
overwhelming majority are good citizens" (USA TODAY, 10/20).
