R.I.P. Sean Taylor

Before I get started here, let me just say that the death of Sean Taylor is a tragedy. He was such a promising young man with such an incredible future in front of him. But there have been some things really bothering me about this whole situation. First of all, murders such as this take place all over the country, on a daily basis. For black men between 15-24 years old, homicide is the leading cause of death. This kind of thing happens every day, but why does it take an athlete as great as Sean Taylor for so many in this country to see and feel this kind of pain? Not even when Darrent Williams was killed was there this big of a reaction. My buddy Ross, who happens to hail from DC, wrote a great piece on why this happens for lamesports.net.

Now it could be that I am seeing this big of a reaction because I am currently living in DC, and the DC residents are the most devoted fans in the NFL, or it could be that Taylor was killed for the simple fact that he was home and trying to protect what was his when someone broke in, but regardless of the reason, I sincerely hope that it can affect some kind of change. I am not a person that believes that everything happens for a reason, but I am a firm believer in making the best out of any situation you a given. If Sean Taylor's death could lead to some type of change in our society, and out of this tragedy, families around the country can avoid having to lay their loved ones in the ground, then Taylor's death is not 'all for naught', so to speak. What kind of change? I don't know. But there are plenty of elected individuals in the Redskins home city alot smarter than I am that can make this kind of change. I don't want to get too political here because I believe the main purpose of sports is to take us away from the rigors and stresses of the real world, but maybe, just maybe, the murder of someone so famous can make some of these lawmakers realize there is so much that we need to fix in our own country.

Just to reiterate, Sean Taylor's passing is a tragedy, for both him and the NFL. Here was a guy who was a poster boy for troubled, young NFL stars. In his first two years, he was arrested and charged twice (once for brandishing a gun in a fight, and once for drunk driving), was fined seven times for late hits, and was ejected and fined for spitting in the face of Michael Pittman of the Buccaneers in a playoff game. But he had turned it all around. He had just made a his first Pro Bowl. He had an 18 month daughter that changed his life. He was the first to practice, and the last to leave. He turned himself into a role model for guys like Pacman Jones and Chris Henry, proof that anyone could turn it around and become the most beloved person on the most beloved team in our nation's capital. This kind of violence is such a waste - a waste of a great man and talented individual.

RIP Sean Taylor #21