How Many More Bullets Can Contrite Roethlisberger Continue to Dodge?
by David Whitley
Well, it's official. Ben Roethlisberger is the luckiest man alive.
Until Friday I thought it was Thomas Magill. He's the guy that jumped off a 40-story building this week. The poor guy's suicide attempt was foiled when he landed on a two-year-old sports car.
Roethlisberger has been trying to commit career suicide all his adult life. In the latest attempt, he was fortunate to hit on a scared 20-year-old coed.
She didn't want to testify about what happened on the night of March 5th. That pretty much paved the way for what happened Friday, when the NFL reduced Roethlisberger's suspension from six to four games.
The immediate argument was whether Roger Goodell did the right thing. The NFL commissioner didn't leave himself much choice. When Goodell initially suspended Roethlisberger, he said the penalty would be reduced if the Steelers quarterback was a good boy.
Big Ben just had to eat his vegetables, make up his bed every morning and stop being accused of sexual assault on a regular basis. Caligula could do that for five months.
Friday's parole announcement is just the latest lucky twist in Roethlisberger's charmed life. He could easily be dead or in jail; instead a guardian angel always intervenes.
by Chris Harry
Tampa Bay cornerback Aqib Talib, possibly the best player on the Buccaneers rebuilding team, received a one-game suspension Tuesday from the NFL for violating the league's personal conduct policy.
Talib, the former first-round pick from Kansas who led the Bucs with five interceptions to go with 65 tackles in 2009, will miss the 2010 season opener Sept. 12 at home against the Cleveland Browns.
The suspension is rooted in an incident last summer when Talib, 24, punched a cab driver in St. Petersburg, Fla., and was charged with resisting arrest without violence and simple battery. A pre-trial intervention agreement reduced the charges, with Talib ordered to anger management counseling.
"Since last fall, Aqib has done all that's been asked of him and more, on and especially off the field,'' Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik said in a statement. "We look forward to his return to the field in Week 2.'' 
by A.J. Perez
Former New York Giants receiver Plaxico Burress was denied a work release request by the New York Department of Correctional Services this week, the second time such a petition by Burress has been turned down.
Burress, who pleaded guilty to weapons charges in August 2009 and was sentenced to two years in prison, was notified of the denied work-release decision on Monday, Department of Correctional Services spokesperson Linda M. Foglia said in a statement. The reason given by the panel was the simple fact that Burress' crime -- which involved Burress shooting himself in the leg at a nightclub in November 2009 -- involved a gun.
"The serious and negative impact illegal guns have on the community coupled with the dangerous nature of the weapon discharging in a public place renders him unsuitable for work release participation," the chairperson of the review board wrote, in a document obtained by FanHouse.
View PDF: Burress' Denied Work Release Request
View PDF: Burress' Inmate Misbehavior Report
by FanHouse Newswire
HOUSTON (AP) -- Suspended Green Bay Packers defensive end Johnny Jolly made a deal with prosecutors Tuesday to avoid trial on a felony drug charge and have the case against him dismissed if he stays out of trouble for the next year.
Jolly was given pretrial diversion, a form of probation that will have the charge against him dismissed in a year if he doesn't break the law and completes other requirements, including 160 hours of community service. Part of the community service will be 10 speaking engagements where he will talk to children and others about the dangers of drug use.
The agreement was reached as Jolly's trial was set to begin this week. He had been facing up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Jolly was charged with possession of a controlled substance - having at least 200 grams of codeine - after being arrested July 2008 in the parking lot of a Houston club known for drug and gun use. In Jolly's car, police found cups that had a codeine mixture. 
by FanHouse Staff
Falcons defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux was suspended by the NFL for one game due to his arrest last year on marijuana charges, the league announced Tuesday.
Babineaux will lose one game check ($260,000), although he will be allowed to participate in all of the Falcons' preseason games. The Falcons open the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 12.
Babineaux had his felony charge of marijuana possession reduced to three misdemeanor counts as part of a plea deal last month, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Police found 1 1/2 ounces of marijuana in Babineaux's car in suburban Atlanta last December.
As part of the plea, Babineaux didn't have to serve any jail time.
"He pleaded no contest, was direct, forthcoming and cooperative with the DA's office," Babineaux's agent, Jack Bechta, told the newspaper. "Jon, told me that he 'was embarrassed' by the incident, it was a bad decision and that he will become a better person for it. He said he will accept the consequences, move on and that he's ready to focus on the season."