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Jay Mariotti

Reality TV Bad Place for Merriman, NFL

Posted Sep 07, 2009 11:00PM By Jay Mariotti (RSS feed)

Filed Under: NFL

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Shawne Merriman / Tila TequilaMy first instinct is to doubt a girl who, among other idiosyncrasies, changed her name from Tila Nguyen to a potent Mexican liquor. Tila Tequila has posed for Playboy and Maxim. She is a bisexual whirlwind who hosted an MTV reality show, A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila, in which she chose between lesbians and heterosexual men for dates. She wrote a book called, "Hooking Up with Tila Tequila: A Guide to Love, Fame, Happiness, Success and Being the Life of the Party." She has 4 million friends on MySpace and is a social-networking fiend.

One of her recent posts, on Twitter, involved love letters to football star Shawne Merriman. Wrote Ms. Tequila on Saturday: "Im tweeting you from the next ... room ... WAKE YOUR --- UP! LOL. ... awwww U sleeping like an angel. ... SExy Sexy babay!"

"I like attention,'' she once said.

Ya think?

But I learned long ago never to summarily dismiss any woman who accuses an athlete of domestic violence. So what we have here, in the case of Tequila vs. Merriman, is yet another potentially dark moment for the NFL on the eve of a compelling season. According to Tequila, the Chargers linebacker known as "Lights Out" -- you've watched his dance, I'm sure -- spent the wee hours of Sunday choking, restraining and throwing her to the ground as she tried to leave his suburban San Diego home. If her charges of battery and false imprisonment are true, this would be the latest sick story to tarnish the inner sanctum of a league that has seen Michael Vick murder dogs, Donte Stallworth hit and kill a man while driving drunk, Pacman Jones become a perpetual public menace, Ben Roethlisberger deny that he sexually assaulted a woman and, since 2000, at least 467 arrests and citations (we're not talking speeding tickets here) involving league players. This is why commissioner Roger Goodell has emphasized his personal-conduct policy in the initial stages of his regime. And this is why he must continue to make the criminal element his No. 1 priority, realizing that players have learned absolutely nothing from all the high-profile crises.

The question I'd have for Merriman is why he's hanging out in the wee hours with a reality star. As it is, Merriman is one of the NFL's most disappointing marquee players, having served a four-game suspension three years ago for a dirty steroids test. Even if it wasn't received with the moral outrage accompanying baseball's major steroids sins -- Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, David Ortiz and Sammy Sosa being the latest -- it reminded us that football continues to be overrun by performance-enhancement issues. Now we wonder if Merriman, a frenetic defender given to outlandish quotes and wild emotional displays on the field, has a dangerous side to him.

"It's disappointing to hear about the issue involving Shawne Merriman," said Chargers general manager A.J. Smith, who has had several players encounter off-field incidents and is said to be losing patience with Merriman's personal conduct. "We'll continue to monitor the situation and let the legal process run its course."

For two days, Merriman and his attorney, Todd Macaluso, have been aggressive in claiming his innocence and undermining her reputation. They said Tequila was intoxicated -- that isn't a phrase you write every day -- and that he was attempting to prevent her from driving drunk. A warning: Just because they've gone on the offensive doesn't necessarily mean he's innocent of the accusations. Said Merriman in a statement: "At the time, I was concerned about her welfare given the intoxicated state she appeared to be in and I encouraged her to stay until safe transportation could be provided. We would all do our best to help a friend if we considered their actions to be detrimental to their personal safety. I in no way caused any harm to Ms. Nguyen; however, paramedics were called and she was examined but no injuries were reported. She was released and has since returned to Los Angeles. There have been no charges filed against me. I want to thank the San Diego Sheriff's Department for their professionalism. I will continue to cooperate fully with the Department and I look forward to clearing my name regarding these false allegations. I want to put this behind me so I can continue to focus on a successful season for the Chargers."

Said Macaluso, to the Associated Press: "There was absolutely no wrongdoing on the part of Mr. Merriman. He essentially was doing what was appropriate under the circumstances in trying to protect the safety of Miss Tequila. There were numerous eyewitnesses that will support his version of the events that transpired at his home."

All I know is, someone's lying.

It should be pointed out that Tequila, who claims she was held against her will, was able to call 911. "She was able to talk. She was able to walk. She was mobile. She didn't have any serious injuries that our deputies saw," said San Diego Sheriff's Department spokesman Jan Caldwell, who added that the deputies confirmed that Tequila had been drinking. Merriman and Tequila had appeared until closing time at a downtown San Diego nightclub called Stingaree, where they also had been the night before at an advertised function after the Chargers' final preseason game.

"Im the Head Cheerleader Prom Queen and @shawnemerriman is the Prom King! hahaha! LETS GOOO! LIGHTS OUT! SAN DIEGO I WILL SEE U TOMORROW!" Ms. Tequila wrote earlier that day on Twitter.

The nightclub actually felt compelled to make a statement, saying Merriman and Tequila were there with friends to celebrate a birthday. "They seemed in good spirits throughout the evening and were enjoying themselves," the statement said. "There was no outward indication of any problem between the two of them." But then, what would you expect from a local club frequented by Merriman and other San Diego athletes?

Merriman seems to believe the matter will disappear quickly. He practiced Monday and said afterward, "I think when it all surfaces, it will be a different situation. Period." But there are two sides to every story.

"Due to the serious nature of this matter, and out of respect for all domestic violence victims and defendants, Ms. Nguyen and her representatives will not be publicly addressing the facts and circumstances of the incident," said Tequila's New York-based attorney, Scott E. Leemon.

The question I'd have for Merriman is why he's hanging out in the wee hours with a reality star. The best way to avoid trouble is to think two or three steps ahead and, you know, not invite her to your house in the distant 'burbs after you've been at a nightclub. If Tequila's text messages and Tweets suggested a romantic relationship, Merriman told ESPN that she is only an acquaintance. OK, then why invite a female acquaintance to your house at 2 AM? Not to drape a sinister blanket over all reality stars, but just last month, a Canadian reality actor named Ryan Jenkins took his own life after he was accused of killing his former wife. Maybe reality isn't a good place for Merriman -- or any of us -- to hang out. The disturbance call to police came at 3:45 AM from Merriman's home. Tequila requested an ambulance that took her to a hospital, where she was treated and released.

It's about the last news Smith wanted to hear. As much as the GM speaks of signing "character" players, the Chargers have been dogged by too many police episodes and steroids cases in recent years. Some think this team is primed to make a Super Bowl run, but the Chargers can't do so if Merriman continues to be irresponsible. He's too important to the defense, the locker room and the total cause. Management wasn't pleased last year when, after injuring his knee and missing all but one game, he immersed himself into nightlife in Los Angeles and flew there back and forth to do a weekly football TV show.

If this turns out to be a serious matter, Merriman conceivably could be suspended by the NFL. That's not a recipe for beating the Steelers, Patriots and other contenders in the jammed-up AFC.

Shawne Merriman "We've been through so much stuff -- off-the-field issues, individual problems, suspensions, things that were hard to deal with," linebacker Stephen Cooper told the San Diego Union-Tribune, not mentioning that he served a four-game suspension last year after testing positive for a banned stimulant. "This team is going to be fine. Shawne is going to be at practice and play in games. We're going to be good."

"The last thing I want to be," Merriman said, "is a distraction to the team."

Guess what? He already is. Next time, he should leave Tila Tequila -- and all other types of tequila -- at the bar and then leave reality TV to the world's kooks and losers.
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Tags: shawne+merriman, ShawneMerriman, tila+tequila, TilaTequila

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Jay Mariotti

Jay MariottiJay Mariotti is a national columnist and commentator for FanHouse.com. He is a daily panelist on ESPN's sports-debate show, "Around The Horn,'' seen Monday through Friday at 5 p.m. ET. Mariotti spent 17 years as a lead sports columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and has covered every major sporting event -- national and worldwide -- on multiple occasions.