Coles story
John C TX
is good story.He may be my favorite jet receiver of all time. I hope
he gets out before he gets another bad concussion.
http://sports.espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/news/story?id=5452179
ORTLAND, N.Y. -- They are the oddest of couples, a 32-year-old wide
receiver and a 62-year-old former FBI agent. They're from different
worlds and different generations, linked by one moment -- a moment
that changed the receiver's life. And maybe, in a small way, did the
same for the former G-Man.
Laveranues Coles
Laveranues Coles is back with the Jets for a third, and final, stop.
Laveranues Coles was bad news coming out of Florida State in 2000, so
talented but so risky because of a rap sheet that frightened NFL
teams. Steve Yarnell was the New York Jets' security director -- still
is -- and he performed the background check on Coles.
After digging into Coles' past, Yarnell gave a thumbs-up to the Jets'
front office. This is a man who investigated the 1993 World Trade
Center bombing and other high-profile terrorist attacks for the FBI,
so you can imagine the depth and quality of his check on Coles. But on
draft day, Yarnell was challenged by Bill Parcells, who ran the
football operation at the time.
It sparked a legendary draft-room exchange between Parcells and
Yarnell, who once played under Parcells -- a former Army assistant
coach -- at West Point. The room got loud. The language turned salty.
Parcells wanted -- no, demanded -- to know if Coles was worth it.
Would he embarrass the organization by getting into trouble?
Parcells interrogated the interrogator, prompting an animated rebuttal
from the usually stoic Yarnell. Jaws dropped.
"I remember Steve, his voice rising, saying, 'This is our [expletive]
guy. I guarantee he'll be a good pro,'" recalled current Jets GM Mike
Tannenbaum, a fledgling executive at the time. "He refused to blink.
He basically said, 'Hold me accountable if it doesn't work out.' Very
rarely does anybody speak like that in a draft room. There was
silence."
The Jets wound up drafting Coles in the third round. You might say it
worked out.
Ten years and 8,609 receiving yards later, with nary a hint of trouble
off the field, Coles is back with the Jets for the third time. After
stints with the Washington Redskins and Cincinnati Bengals, he's
finishing his playing career where it began, appreciating the
nostalgia.
Steve Yarnell
Yarnell is a former FBI agent, who investigated the first World Trade
Center bombing.
Coles feels indebted to the Jets for giving him "a great start on
life," and he'd like to remain in the organization when he retires.
That, he said, will happen when his current Jets gig is over. He
ultimately hopes to work in the front office, but he's willing to
climb the ladder.
"I'll start with anything, even if it's getting them coffee in the
morning," Coles said during a break at training camp.
Coles used to be guarded, even surly to those outside his inner
circle, but he has softened over the years. He has turned out like
Yarnell imagined a decade ago, when he wrote in his report on Coles,
"He does have a likable side, and seems to realize that he is on the
edge of a cliff. I strongly believe he can be worked with."
If it weren't for Yarnell, the Jets probably wouldn't have drafted
Coles. The organization places its faith in Yarnell's ability to
uncover the truth and make judgments. Each year, he vetoes dozens of
character risks -- draft-eligible players with even fewer blemishes
than Coles. But there was something about the introvert from
Jacksonville, Fla., that made him believe.
"I just had a good feeling about him even though he had those clouds,"
Yarnell said in a rare interview.
Ah, yes, the clouds. There was a simple battery charge for an
altercation with his former stepmother, and, of course, the infamous
shopping "discount" with former Florida State teammate Peter Warrick
that resulted in a felony theft charge. He was booted off the team.
The NFL treated him as if he were radioactive.
"That was the era of Ray Lewis and Rae Carruth, and character had
become a huge issue," Coles said. "At the time, it made things iffy
for me. For me to go on the first day [of the draft], it was a
blessing because a lot of teams didn't want to deal with guys like
me."
Yarnell flew to Jacksonville and did his thing, interviewing everyone
from law-enforcement officials to family members. The offensive
coordinator, Dan Henning, met Coles over dinner at an Olive Garden,
and he passed along his impressions -- positive -- to Yarnell. Yarnell
wrote a two-page report on his findings, but the ultimate call came on
draft day, when Parcells put Yarnell on the spot.
Recalling that moment and his out-of-character reaction, Yarnell
revealed an almost-smile.
"I was emphatic," he said. "I believed what I was saying."
JetsLife
Thanks for alerting us to this story John. It was courageous and
honorable LC came fwd regarding abuse he suffered, in an effort to
help others.
I never had much of a problem with Coles's contract demands. Nor
Revis. Who wouldn't seek their market value?
This said it's kinda sad when we have the flower of nation serving and
dying, for peanuts, far from their families and loved ones.
I hope a good % of NFL multi millionaires give back to those who
deserve it.