Prior to the 2010 NFL Draft, Aaron Hernandez's representatives discovered that many NFL teams were worried about his alleged use of marijuana in college. It seems that the Patriots, in particular, had inquired about his marijuana use with a number of people close to Hernandez. So he wrote a letter to New England telling him that he would not smoke weed if they selected him in the 2010 NFL Draft. The Boston Herald just uncovered the letter and published it in its entirety over here. Here are a few of the highlights:
- "If you draft me as a member of the New England Patriots, I will willfully submit to a bi-weekly drug test throughout my rookie season (8 drug tests during the 2010 regular season). In addition, I will tie any guaranteed portion of my 2010 compensation to these drug tests and reimburse the team a flat pro-rata amount for any failed drug test."
- "You have your own evaluation as to the type of impact I can have on your offense. The only X-factor, according to the reports I have heard, is concerns about my use of recreational drugs. To address that concern, I am literally putting my money where my mouth is and taking the financial risk away from the team and putting it directly on my back where it belongs."
- "Test me all you want my rookie year…all of the results will be negative while I am having an overwhelmingly positive impact on the field."
A bit cocky? Sure. But apparently, the letter helped the Patriots feel comfortable enough to select Hernandez in the fourth round of the draft that year. Too bad Hernandez couldn't give them assurances about being on his best behavior in other areas of his life, too.
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[via Boston Herald]
