Daniel Shirey-US PRESSWIRE
If you are the star running back on an NFL team that is being considered as one of the possible Super Bowl contenders, you have to think of your team before yourself. Michael Turner should have known better. He should have known where not to be, and what not to do during the NFL season.
He probably did know better, but apparently that didn’t matter.
Turner chose to celebrate the Atlanta Falcons triumph (and his 17 carry, 42 yard performance) over Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos by patronizing Magic City, a strip-tease establishment in downtown Atlanta.
Five shots, and 32 miles-per-hour over the speed limit later, Turner was sitting in the Gwinnett County jail, charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and speeding. He submitted to a portable breath test and registered a .109, the police report states.
“I’d like to apologize to Mr. [Arthur]Blank, Thomas Dimitroff, Mike Smith and the whole Falcons organization and the fans out there for the situation that I’m in right now,” Turner said. “It was a bad decision on my part. I can’t say too much about it in detail right now. I’m just trying to move forward from here.”
Turner will now be placed under the watchful eye of the league’s substance abuse program. Should he have another alcohol related arrest or offense, he could face suspensions and fines.
As of right now, Turner is still listed on the Falcons lineup, and is expected to play while his case makes its way through the legal channels. “Nobody has told me that I’m not playing so, I’m just going to prepare like I am” Turner said.
Turner stated he wasn’t sure why he didn’t call a cab, limo, or car service – which is offered by both the league and the team – to pick him up and take him home.
“It’s a tough situation,” Turner said. “You don’t want to disappoint anybody, family or friends, co-workers or anybody. It’s always tough.”
Apparently Turner has never seen Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, for in the immortal words of Mr. Spock, “The needs of the many, outweigh the needs of the few…or the one”
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Michael Collins is a Rant Sports NFL Network Manager and Atlanta sports columnist. Follow him @GaSportsCraze on Twitter and here on Facebook
