Chicago Bears: Sam Hurd Arrest Likely To Spell End of Jerry Angelo’s Tenure
Published by Ryan Terrell on December 15, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
This is it for General Manager Jerry Angelo.
The failed draft picks have piled up, the draft room blunders have surfaced and his lack of awareness to his team’s personnel issues is clearer than ever.
But what happened Thursday morning will undoubtedly lead to his departure as Bears general manger, and rightfully so.
Sam Hurd, signed to the Bears’ squad just five months ago with a three-year, $3.97 million contract, was arrested by federal investigators who allege he negotiated with an undercover agent to purchase five to 10 kilograms of cocaine and 1,000 pounds of marijuana per week for distribution in the Chicago area.
Hours after the news broke, the story got even worse for the Chicago Bears, a franchise that has long prided itself on being a family-run, tight-knit, no-nonsense organization—a franchise that doesn’t hesitate to show the door to any player or team official who could threaten or tarnish that image.
Chicago’s 670 The Score radio station, citing a law enforcement official in Dallas, reported that Hurd was known as one of the premier drug suppliers in the Chicago area and was also a supplier of drugs to NFL players—a list of NFL clients that is in “the double digits.”
Whoa.
How is Angelo at fault with any of this?
Sure, Angelo or the Bears coaching staff can’t be expected to babysit or even police players outside of Halas Hall.
But this powdered mess would not be a growing stain for the Chicago Bears organization had Angelo and his folks done their homework.
According to the criminal complaint, Hurd consensually met with a federal agent on July 28 in hopes of reclaiming $88,000 in cash seized a day earlier from a car he owned. The car was being driven by an associate before it was pulled over by Dallas police, according to the complaint.
Hurd’s associate—who told authorities the money was Hurd’s—was allegedly on his way to purchase five kilograms of cocaine from an undercover agent before he was pulled over, the complaint states.
During the meeting with the federal agent, Hurd reportedly told authorities that he had left the bag of money in the car, and reasoned that the associate had possession of his car because he was doing some maintenance and detailing work.
A day after the meeting, on July 29, the Bears inked Hurd.
One would conclude then that Bears brass didn’t know Hurd was under investigation for possibly being at the center of a multi-million dollar drug ring.
Don’t these franchises—sometimes worth billions of dollars—have people for this?
In an unfortunate day and age in which one popular NFL news site runs a “Turd Watch” documenting arrests of NFL players, one would think these billion-dollar organizations would go to massive lengths to ensure they are not about to employ the next felon.
Yet, still, a “turd” like Hurd found his way onto the Bears’ roster with a three-year commitment.
The Bears better hope reports of Hurd being the drug dealer of choice for some NFL players is off base or inaccurate.
What isn’t off base is that the Bears are yet again at the center of controversy in the NFL.
And yet again it seems Jerry Angelo could have done things differently. Yet again it seems he’s hurt the franchise.
And yet again the Bears will end another season on a sour note.
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