Rolling Stone article drops bombshells on Aaron Hernandez
Wow... just wow. It really is crazy how Aaron Hernandez was actually a role model to his family, friends, and millions of Patriots fans all across the globe. The story of a troubled kid who actually made it out, and made it BIG TIME could inspire anybody. Hernandez came into the NFL as a serious offensive weapon and before we knew it, he was an All Star and fan-favorite. Maybe his skill and talent was on the field, but apparently his mind was elsewhere.
The Rolling Stone released their article titled. "The Gangster in the Huddle" regarding the side of Aaron Hernandez that we never saw. This includes drug use, issues with teammates and even head coach Bill Belichick, his upbringing and family life. Here's a quick list:
• Hernandez was a heavy user of angel dust, and had become so paranoid over the last year that he carried a gun wherever he went.
• He surrounded himself with a cohort of gangsters, and cut himself off from his family and teammates.
• Hernandez had so infuriated his head coach, Bill Belichick, with missed practices and thug-life stunts, that he was one misstep from being cut.
• Both his parents, Dennis and Terri, had criminal records, as did much of his extended family.
• Terri allegedly cheated on Dennis before his death with a violent drug dealer named Jeffrey Cummings, then married Cummings after Dennis died and moved him into the house she shared with Aaron.
• In college his coach (then-University of Florida head coach Urban Meyer) may have helped cover up failed drug tests, along with two violent incidents — an assault and a drive-by shootout outside a local bar.
While making my way through the article, I found myself most intrigued in Hernandez's relationship with his father. A former star athlete, Dennis instilled in his son morals and a proper work ethic that would allow Aaron to make his way to D1 college football and eventually the NFL. One of Aaron's old practice opponents had this to say,
“He was so focused on his body that he barely partied, maybe snuck a little weed here and there. But we all did that, ’cause our parents were always home. If we wanted to drink on weekends, we had to run out to someone’s car.”
This source even went on to describe Hernandez as a sort of "goof" who was always looking for a simple good laugh. Regarding how Hernandez fit in with the community, this is what a source had to say:
“Part of Aaron’s problem is, he never got no street sense; Dennis sheltered them from that life with all his might,” says Gary Fortier. “He was the perfect dad: He went to every scrimmage, and got ’em up at dawn to work out,"
Believe what you may, but it seems evident that the death of Aaron's father could have been what pushed him off the edge, especially with his mother having a relationship with a renown drug-dealer and his older brother away playing college football at UConn. The man and role model that sheltered Aaron from the harsh world around him was gone:
“His brother was at college, and the only other person he would really talk to was the one who was taken away.”
With the death of Dennis came the disappearance of the young and innocent Aaron Hernandez. A highly skilled athlete and fairly well-behaved kid ultimately became a gang affiliate and murderer. Truly unfortunate, as the sky was the limit for Hernandez. How we face adversity is what makes us who we are. Though Aaron was dealt a hand that most of us wouldn't even have nightmares about, he made the decisions to become the man he is today, locked up in a jail cell. Truly, truly, a very sad ending to a nearly Hollywood-scripted cinderella story.
Anthony Aidonidis
@aidonidis18
