Collegiate Times

In the wake of the senseless death of Redskins safety Sean Taylor, I can't help but notice how the sports media has covered his death with the same distaste and misunderstanding with which they covered his life.

In his NFL infancy, Taylor was like many young players: unsure of how to deal with the pressure and expectations that the league and fans have of new players, and maybe a little too raw. He made this evident in the playoff game where he spat on Tampa Bay running back Michael Pittman. He apologized and forfeit his salary for that game ($17,000). He also had some legal issues involving the theft of his property and was charged with assault. The case ended up being dropped because the prosecutor was using the trial to gain notoriety for his work at a disk jockey. It should also be noted that he was shot at by the people responsible several times. His car was riddled with bullets, as was the home of a friend he was with.

Since that time, Taylor had completely changed his life. His growth and development was fostered by the birth of his child and lauded by his coaches Joe Gibbs and Gregg Williams. Gibbs went so far as to say that Taylor had "deepened his relationship with the Lord" and noted that Taylor had not missed Chapel this year.

Yet in every news story, the subject immediately following Taylor's death is his "checkered past." He didn't have a checkered past. He had a thrown out DUI (hardly exclusive to pro-football players) and was framed in an assault case, which happens to many of the rich and famous.

He had no known priors, and his father was a police chief. He was in no way the thug the media has portrayed him as, yet no one would know this if they only spent a few short minutes listening to the talking heads or reading the headlines.

So, for once, we have the story of a young man who gets into trouble, then turns his life back to the straight and narrow, and the media labels him a thug anyway. The Washington Post sports contributor Len Shapiro even went so far as to predict such an ending for Taylor. On the show "Washington Post Live," he went so far as to say he "wasn't surprised" that this had happened to Taylor.

The man was sleeping in his bedroom, with his long-time girlfriend and fianc and his year-old daughter, when men apparently cut the phone line, kicked in the bedroom door Taylor had locked, and shot him. He wasn't in a disagreement at strip club, and it wasn't a botched drug deal; it was a man sleeping in his home with his family. Shapiro's cold-heartedness and judgment of Taylor is undue and unbefitting.

As is the case with all of us, we have done things of which we are not proud. I'm sure Taylor wasn't proud of the spitting incident or the situation in which he involved himself in Miami. Either way, they were exceptions rather than habits of behavior and the media has no right to parade Sean Taylor as a "thug" and a victim of his own doing.

Sean Taylor never wanted media spotlight, and he shunned the reporters and cameras. He rarely gave interviews (unusual for a franchise player), and cited a mistrust of the media (can you blame him?).

Instead, he let his game do all of his talking for him. After watching Taylor's performance over the past 4 seasons, it's evident why he never needed to give interviews. A pro-bowler in only his third season, Taylor's footsteps terrified receivers and offensive backs. His athleticism was unusual and exceptional; Gregg Williams called him "the best athlete I've ever coached." He was such a joy to watch on the field, and it was so rewarding for once to see a young, pro-athlete accept the responsibility that came with his superstardom and change his life for the better. May Sean Taylor rest in peace, and I hope the sports media portray him in a manner befitting his short life.