A speeding ticket. That's what ended Tank Johnson's career with the Chicago Bears.
On Thursday, Gilbert, Arizona authorities notified Johnson that they declined to press any charges against him following his arrest last month for suspicion of DUI. Just days after the event, the Bears cut Tank. That move began to look a little premature as authorities revealed earlier this week that Tank's BAC was .072 -- under the .08 limit for DUI. They could have chosen to press charges anyway had he clearly been impaired in spite of being under the legal limit. That they did not, gives some indication of Tank's true condition and what may have actually transpired that night when stopped by police.
For all we know, he might have been stopped for a DWB -- driving while black. Small town cop, young black man driving a fancy car? Hmmm.... Cop asks if Tank's been drinking, and he says he had a couple. That gets him hauled in on suspicion of DUI. National exposure and a legal BAC, and authorities drop it like a hot potato.
Yet the Bears dropped Johnson even quicker. If they were willing to stand by Tank through all his previous troubles, well then Chicagoist wants the Bears to bring back Tank. Right the wrong they committed by not waiting for more facts. Because, really, should anybody lose their job over a traffic violation? Well maybe some should, but not Tank!
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It's not that he was suspended over a traffic ticket, it's that he was driving around at 3:30 in the morning after having a few drinks when he was under a zero tolerance policy. He wasn't pulled over because he was black. Tank was going 40 in a 25 zone. The Bears did the right thing to cut the fool for screwing up after a zero tolerance policy. He's never going to change.
Although his BAC was below .08, he does weigh over 300 pounds, meaning he had around six beers and decided to drive around at 3am. I think justice was served in both cases -- he wasn't legally drunk (charges dropped) but he wasn't staying out of trouble (Tank dropped).
Tank knew he was on thin ice as it was, and still went out and partied and drove home himself. A man as large as he is has to drink quite a bit to even get to .072. and who knows if he was drunk when he was pulled over and how much time elapsed until he was given the BAC test. Point is, he was not in a position to take any chances. he did, and he lost. He obviously didn't take being a Bear that seriously, so he's done. He had his chance.
Bring him back! He is the type of guy that just gets caught for everything. He has bad luck! All the players drink and drive as do all the cops.
"For all we know, he might have been stopped for a DWB -- driving while black. Small town cop, young black man driving a fancy car?"
Actually, the story states quite clearly that he was pulled over for speeding. That some smelly bait, Benjy. Care to reconsider?
for what it's worth, if you consider the time that lapses between the moment you are pulled over and the time that you arrive at the police station, go through some sort of booking procedure, and actually have blood drawn, it's likely that if his blood tested at .072 he would have been over the limit at the time he was pulled over. But I'm not a doctor, what do I know?
Regardless, I agree with everyone else. Legally drunk or not, he was most certainly not conducting himself the way the team had told him to. They don't need this type of headache.
But he's a black guy who got busted for doing something, it must be racism! It couldn't possibly be him fucking up!!
Gibert, AZ has a population of 191,500+ people, about that of Schaumburg and Joliet combined. Is that what you call a small town?
Shut up with the "driving while black" ridiculousness. I can't figure out if you're trying to be clever or what, but it's as baseless, insulting, and asinine as the first two times you posted it.
Though not illegal, being out drinking and driving at 3:30 in the morning while on team probation is just plain stupid. I loved Tank, but come the fuck on.
That's a bullshit post (and I usually like your work). So he was a half beer away from being "legally" drunk, but was most likety impaired. He was out at a silly hour for someone trying to get on the right track, and was speeding. I agree with cutting him, it probably should have been sooner.
You see, Benjy? When you lob baseless allusions to police racism out there, you make it easier for people like guest7 to dismiss that motive across the board.
The "driving while black" accusation is downright embarrassing to read on this site.
You should be ashamed. He was pulled over for speeding and had been drinking. Are you advocating that this is OK as long as you are minutely under the legal limit?
This is the second sports story you have written that comes across as sheer stupidity.
Cops must have raided his house not for guns and loads of ammunition, but to make a general check on the black population of rich suburbia too, called LWB- Living While Black.
Oh, and his best friend was probably shot for CLB- Clubbing While Black.
In fact, after this latest .... While Black episode; Tank now has the authority to sue not only the Bears organization for FWB- Firing While Black, but to sue the media for disparaging his impecable character for CWB- Coverage While Black.
Chicagoist- Benji inparticular- I hope you have a good lawyer (who's black).
Saying Tank lost his job because of speeding is like saying Capone's career ended because of tax evasion. Yes, that's how that got him in the end, but if he hadn't done all the things he'd done before, they wouldn't have been out to get him in the first place.
Posts like this remind me of why I rarely read chicagoist anymore.
The ticket didn't end Tank Johnson's career. Tank Johnson ended Tank Johnson's career. If you're subject to a zero tolerance policy and you want to have some drinks, don't drive a car afterwards (or at least be smart enough to drive the speed limit). Let it go.
Benjy, Benjy, Benjy.
No, no, no.
I honestly believe that Tank thought he was a "changed man." But I don't think he was bright enough to carry through on that point. The Bears put their reputation on the line saying that they would stick by the guy as he tries to turn his life around... and he embarrassed them. I'm sure that the Bengals will probably pick him up soon enough.
Benjy, didn't you post almost exactly the same piece just three days ago? Why the need to re-post?
No, Benjy, *Tank* ended Tank's career. Not a speeding ticket. Remember the gun possession? Oh, yeah, remember the probation violations? It's not like Tank has a squeaky clean image here.
Putting aside your asinine race baiting, this was more than just a speeding ticket. One's BAC doesn't get to .072 after one or two beers... especially if you weigh in at 300lbs. Think about it, Benjy... .072 and the legal limit was .08. He was .008 away from being charged. Since you seem to be math impaired, that only 8 *thousandths* away from being, well, Tanked. So he wasn't driving *sober*. He was speeding. After having consumed a lot of alcohol. He knew better. He did it anyway. Game over, man.
Good riddance.
If you get put on probabtion by your employer, and know if you even get caught jaywalking it will be on ESPN in 12 hours, you might not want to push the envelope on drunk driving laws.
You think a few cops might not want to be the guy to bust him to get their fifteen minutes? This moron should have been cut last year. Try spending 60 days in jail and see if your employer welcomes you back to the payroll with open arms.
Paris Hilton got busted for being white. It sounds ridiculous, but no more than Tank for being black.
Oprah is always getting busted and thrown in jail.
Dusty Baker was a regular in the back of a cop car while managing the Cubs.
Ben Wallace, he's been in Cook County jail ten times since he got here!
Wait a minute...you mean these people haven't been in jail and are generally law abiding citizens? But they are black, and Chicago based celebrities so they should get busted for being black too based on the logic in this post!
DWB is an insult to the vast majority of African Americans who abide by the law and never go to jail in the first place, much less decide to booze it up at 3:00a while on probabtion.
Driving at 25 miles over the speed limit, at 3 a.m., while drunk? And you call this DWB???
Really -- where was Tank going in such a hurry at 3 a.m.???
And do the math -- to get to the legal limit a 300 pound man (athelite no less) would have to have a drink every 35 minutes for 6 1/2 hours!!!
This man has broken every commitment he has made and done stupid thing after stupid thing from blatant parole violations to firearms to pitbulls to loud parties disturbing the neighborhood on and on.
At this point the Bears couldn't keep him on if the wanted to. How long will it be before this man accidently kills someone or makes some other major blunder??? Then everyone would point to the Bears and say "why didn't you do something" !
That Chicagoist would publish this point of view is pathetic. It supports stereotypes of the worst kind. My black co-workers and friends would never want a label like DWB to be attached to Tank Johnson. Racism still exists, but this man has brought all his pain onto himself by his own stupid actions. Saying that Tank was DWB as an excuse undermines the efforts of the black community.
he gets paid almost half a million a year
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/player/200279
to "play" a couple dozen games. Please. Don't screw up then. No pity party.
DWB? Sounds like the Benj was BWJ (blogging while Jewish)