McKinley Was Deep in Gambling Debt

[Passepartout]

So sad to hear that. Prayer and thoughts are still with his family though.

[carrlover]

I always will like Brandstater even though we got rid of him.I wish we still had Brandstater on this team.RIP McKinnely

Me too I miss Tom Brandstater as a Denver Bronco and RIP McKinnely Brandstater was good friend and good teammate to McKinnely.

[Rarelyoffended]

I rather be in LA then Chicago. They are robbing athletes and killing their families look what happened to antoine walker, Or Jennifer Hudsons family. Or Tank Johnsons bodyguard stay out of chicago the gangs here are plotting its nothing nice at all.

[MTL 60]

Tom B. helping him out is a true friend indeed.Why do people like Jabbar and other atheletes need to be carrying guns in Denver. After the tragedy of Darrent Williams Ihave to ask myself if Denver is a safe city or is it a mini LA full of wannabee gangsters . I live in Montreal and i am pretty darn sure that no one on the Montreal Canadiens needs to carry a gun when he is out on the town.Different cultures different values,Iwish I knew.

[Joshecalpoly]

Still he had that much bling and 2 cars to his name gambling probably wasnt his only problem like so many football stars he probably went on crazy spending sprees and emptied his first few pay checks on status symbols. It goes to show you one of the most important things a pro athlete should spend there money on is a financial adviser. I was watching one in an interview with Rome saying how it changed his life because he was deep in debt after only 2 years in the NFL and now every time he makes a large purchase his advisers informed and he has been talked out of buying some stupid things he would have regretted.

Its an unfortunate problem in sport because these guys get the impression they are made of money and start spending like theres no tomorrow. Its not just gambling but wreckless spending that is causing these men to fall into a whole they cant get ot of.

[22cannon]

Gambling sucks

[thatkidhunt]

I was always a fan of Tommy B's.


I hope he gets a shot at some point, cause he could be good.



This story is sad.



R.I.P

[shardar]

Wow, didn't think that McKinley was in that much trouble. Too sad that the help from real friends like Brandstater didn't help him enough to find a way out of this mess.
It's just sad - you get the opportunity to live your dream and earn good money and things don't work out the way you want them to. Just a few bad decisions in your life and you're trapped in a corner with (almost) no way out. Terrible...

[jetrazor74]

Well... and I do get that but you think athlete carrying a gun you think of thugz like Pacman Jones and whatever the dude who shot his own leg was (it's early I can't remember) granted that's a few bad apples but yeah I hear ya.

It's because the only time you ever hear about it is when someone is irresponsible. There are many, many upstanding responsible citizens out there who have concealed weapons permits and carry on a regular basis, and many more who own firearms but don't carry.

Owning or selling a firearm has no bearing on whether one is a responsible, upstanding citizen, or a thug.

[the0rangecrush]

Well... and I do get that but you think athlete carrying a gun you think of thugz like Pacman Jones and whatever the dude who shot his own leg was (it's early I can't remember) granted that's a few bad apples but yeah I hear ya.

It was Plaxico Burress who cheaderbobbed himself. As for Brandon Lloyd its very sad indeed. Living next to two huge casinos gambling problems are huge, and it literally destroys people.

[Freyaka]

I've heard it reported that many NFL players along with other pro-athletes often carry weapons for self-defense since they often carry large sums of money or expensive clothes and/or jewelry, so that's not strange.

And they said the sale of the weapon was legal. Heck, I've sold pistols and rifles to friends who were interested. It makes sense actually. If you purchase something like that from a friend, you know exactly what you're getting.

Well... and I do get that but you think athlete carrying a gun you think of thugz like Pacman Jones and whatever the dude who shot his own leg was (it's early I can't remember) granted that's a few bad apples but yeah I hear ya.

[jetrazor74]

Thing that suprises me most was the fact that he bought the gun from Gaffney....

Sad story it's a shame to see a life cut so tragically short.

I've heard it reported that many NFL players along with other pro-athletes often carry weapons for self-defense since they often carry large sums of money or expensive clothes and/or jewelry, so that's not strange.

And they said the sale of the weapon was legal. Heck, I've sold pistols and rifles to friends who were interested. It makes sense actually. If you purchase something like that from a friend, you know exactly what you're getting.

[Freyaka]

http://www.comcast.net/articles/spor...inley.Suicide/

Financial trouble, add in child support, a possible second kid, and a loan from Brandstater he needed to repay, coupled with possibly not being able to come back from second knee surgery, not hard to see why the guy was depressed.

He really needed a friend to smack him around for the poor gambling, especially since he had a son he needed to care for....

Can't believe Brandstater loaned him $65k, and he'll probably never see that money again, wouldn't be surprised if he gambled some of that away too, trying to win a bunch back to get ahead...

Thing that suprises me most was the fact that he bought the gun from Gaffney....

Sad story it's a shame to see a life cut so tragically short.

[BluenOrnge4Life]

I knew there had to be more to the story than him just being upset about being on injured reserve. This is very sad.

Gambling seems to be a recurring problem with many athletes... there has got to be a better way to get these guys help with this issue before it's too late.

[MHS]

Very sad. Seems like an issue many pro athletes have. They never manage money well. Its just sad Mckinley took it out on himself.