Report: Aaron Hernandez asked the Patriots to trade him because his family was in jeopardy
Back in 2013, before Aaron Hernandez was charged with the murder of Odin Lloyd, the Patriots were in a tough position.
The team had to cut Hernandez and take on the dead cap or keep him on the roster while he went to court.
According to Patriots president Jonathan Kraft, Bill Belichick wanted to keep Hernandez on the roster and see how the legal situation played out. Instead, Kraft says he forced the Patriots to release the tight end.
“Aaron was being led out of his house in handcuffs and it was on television everywhere. I just remember thinking whatever warm feelings we might have toward Aaron, it looks like he’s the ultimate bad thing and we can’t have him on our team any longer,” Kraft said. “At that time, my dad and Bill were both out of the country, but I felt strongly we couldn’t wait. So, I called my dad and he very much agreed.
“And we called Bill, and Bill, as is his way, was always more measured. In the beginning, he said, ‘You know, he’s not guilty yet.’ There were competitive issues, too. He didn’t want to have to lose an amazing football player. So, Bill’s instinct would be to play this (expletive) thing out until the end. I just knew we couldn’t play it out to the end. Not because of how it looked on us, but because we had to set a (expletive) example. I mean, it’s like, this guy’s a murderer!”
The crazy thing is Mike Kadlick from WEEI, is reporting that Aaron Hernandez actually requested a trade back in 2013 saying his girlfriend and his daughter’s safety was in jeopardy. He asked to be traded to the West Coast, but it was not taken serious.
The more stuff that comes out about Aaron Hernandez the sadder the situation becomes.
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