20 Worst Falls from Grace (Athletes)
 

Interesting topic. And look who starts off the list:

20) Jennifer Capriati: This is more of a tragedy than anything.Capriati was a nice girl. I met her many times on the junior tennis circuit. The real Capriati was just as bubbly as the one we saw on camera. But her horror of a dad was always looming. He smothered her, made her hate the game, and turn to other vices.Drug binges and shoplifting charges were part of the fall, although she successfully came back and won Grand Slams again and reached No. 1 in the world in 2001, so she's low on this list. Thankfully, it appears that she's stayed away from her dark side. Capriati appeared on the ABC reality show "The Superstars" last summer and looked healthy.

19) Tiger Woods: Tiger went from this image of the perfect dad with the perfect wife and the $1 billion bank account to the star of TMZ. He reportedly admitted to sleeping with more than 120 women. And now he may surrender the biggest divorce settlement in sports history. Then there's the golf. Nobody wants him to win anymore. We're all just waiting for the next meltdown. So far, Tiger's obliging. He's No. 19 because even if he loses half of his fortune, the dude could still buy the Yankees.

18) Bjorn Borg: Borg won a staggering 11 of the 27 Grand Slams he played, including five Wimbledons. He was the dude's dude, living the dream of celebrity and sport in the '70s.
Then, he walked away from the game, on top, with homes in all parts of the world and as owner of his own island. But after a divorce, a bastard child, rumored drug overdoses and a suicide attempt (which he denies to this day), Borg was on the verge of bankruptcy in 2006 and plans were even made to auction off his Wimbledon trophies. Instead, he created a fashion label that is the second-biggest clothing company in his home Sweden. He also attempted comebacks, but they never equaled the original. All in all, Borg has steadied the ship and is once again enjoying his place as tennis royalty—including the lovely ladies that come with it.

17) Ben Roethlesberger: I'm fresh out of jokes here. The only reason he's not higher on the list is because I don't think he's bottomed-out yet. Dude needs to grow up. Fast. You're not all that, Big Ben. Heck, you can't even get comped at Pittsburgh bars anymore because you're such a douche.

16) Plaxico Burress: I still don't get it. Was Plaxico really that much of a badass that he thought he was going to get shot up at the club? Again, there's a next chapter here. We've seen the fall, but if society holds true, Burress is going to get his shot at a comeback.

15) Michael Vick: He lived the life of a $100 million quarterback in the ATL. Who wouldn't if they were Mike Vick? Ultimately, his backwoods upbringing sank him. I had some pretty sick pictures of dogs I was going to put here, but that would just be gratuitous and pig-piling.
Add in the bad investments and frivolous spending, and you had a morally and financially bankrupt mess. We all want to believe he's rehabilitated. I'll believe it after he starts somewhere for a whole season. Once he gets a taste of the good life again, how will he handle it?

14) Art Schlichter: He was a four-year starter at Ohio State and the last starting quarterback under Woody Hayes. Everybody loved Art, including the Colts. They drafted him fourth in the 1982 draft and thought he was the future. Little did they know about his past. Schlichter was a compulsive, degenerate gambler. He was on the mafia hit list so deep that he went to the FBI for protection. The once-great QB was suspended in 1983 for gambling. He returned in 1984, but admitted to gambling during his suspension. He was released five games into the 1985 season. More gambling arrests followed in 1987, followed by a brief stint in the Arena Football League and a sports radio gig in Cincinnati in the '90s.
He was most recently released from prison in 2006.

13) Lawrence Taylor: Dude. "I thought she was 19," is not exactly going to win you any sympathy. I don't know. Maybe he's just bored. Maybe the straight and narrow just isn't his bag. We're partially to blame. We liked the badass LT. We read the memoir where he bragged about all the drugs and the loose living. This time, it's on you, LT. He fell a lot farther in his personal life than he ever did in the public eye. He made the Hall of Fame and we never stopped liking him.

12) Roger Clemens: There was no argument. Some folks wanted to say Greg Maddux and time has told us that might be true. But, before steroids, Roger Clemens was the greatest pitcher of our generation. Dude was even reportedly there to watch his wife get injected with HGH for this photo shoot. Now, the affair allegations won't stop. And, Clemens still says that he never took any PEDs, though Brian McNamee says he has the goods to finally make him admit it. There's also rumors from a mistress about a sex tape. Rocket Man, you are a world-class letdown. We all know what you are. Again, it's too late for public redemption for you.

11) Ryan Leaf: JaMarcus Russell might be on his way to rescuing you from the title of biggest NFL flop of all time. Just kidding. That's not possible—though I think we only dump on Leaf so badly because we were so ridiculously stupid for thinking that Leaf and Manning were in the same talent league. Leaf's done plenty to pile on his own grave, with prescription drug addictions and stupid arrests. He's on the road to redemption again now, hoping to be an example of hitting your lowest lows and still picking yourself up. For once, we might actually root for this guy.

10) Barry Bonds: Some would say you have to have grace to fall from it. Still, there is no disputing Bonds' greatness in his Pirates days. Even if he'd never done any cream or clear (allegedly...wink, wink), he'd be in the Hall of Fame. Affairs and arrogance sank Bonds' ship. There were at least five times over the last 15 years when I truly believed that people wanted him to show any sign of decency so they could root for him. Bonds may not be able to show what isn't there.

9) Daryl Strawberry: Othen than Junior, Darryl Strawberry had the most potently perfect home run swing I have ever seen. Drugs took down Straw, but he did have a memorable 1996 comeback with the Yankees. Following his retirement, trouble found its way back into Strawberry's life. Drug arrests, prostitution charges, depression, and divorce littered his last decade. But, it appears, Strawberry is currently on the upswing. He's beaten cancer twice, and now serves as an analyst on SNY. Strawberry can also be seen as a cast member of the latest "Celebrity Apprentice."

8) Marion Jones: She was the Olympic hero, the woman that could not be stopped. Then five letters took her down: BALCO. Jones denied, denied, and denied some more, until she became a joke in the sporting world. Yeah right, Marion, that's au naturel. Got it. The sad part is that Jones was a multi-sport talent. She actually played college hoops for the Tar Heels. By the time she finally admitted what she had done, few were willing to listen.

7) Floyd Landis: This little pipsqueak came out of nowhere to win the 2006 Tour de France. The French still haven't taken down Lance Armstrong, but boy, did they ever catch Floyd.
Landis failed a drug test and was stripped of his Tour title. He fought suspensions and disqualifications vigorously, but to no avail. Dude, just admit it. You could score a reality show on Versus or something.

6) Jayson Williams: One night of blackout-level drinking and gunplay took a man's life and ruined another's. Williams was the lovable star of the loser Nets. He had a huge future as a broadcaster after the game. Instead, he's just the guy that everyone points to at the bar on Hilton Head. "Yeah, that guy. That's him." Before his last bizarre arrest in New York, Jayson Williams was playing in a beer softball league down the street from me in South Carolina. He still owns a huge home in a swanky neighborhood down here in the Lowcountry. Wonder if it will still be there when he gets out of jail.

5) Mike Tyson: He could have been the greatest boxer to ever live. He was supposed to save the sport. Instead, he made a laughing stock of both the Sweet Science and himself.
The Buster Douglas fight was just the beginning. Tyson's name repeatedly appeared in the headlines, linked with sexual assault, domestic violence, drug abuse, and depression. And, just when he could have had a revival, Tyson went and bit Evander's ear. Tyson filed bankruptcy in 2003, reportedly $30 million in debt after making $300 million over his career.Tyson enjoyed a bit of a pop culture comeback last year with a scene-stealing moment in the top comedy of the year, "The Hangover." Iron Mike celebrated his success with an arrest for hitting a photographer at a Las Vegas airport. Tragedy struck as well, as his seven-year-old daughter was strangled to death in a bizarre home accident

4) Dwight Gooden: In 1985, Gooden had arguably the greatest season in pitching history. Nothing could stop Doc, except Doc. Drug suspensions shocked the baseball world the first time. But then they just kept coming. Gooden made a spirited comeback with the Yankees in 1996, throwing a no-hitter on May 14. But, his body and his mind couldn't hold up. He was left off the Yanks' playoff roster that year and bounced around until finishing with a murmur in 2000. Since then, he's been arrested for punching his girlfriend, fleeing from a traffic stop, DUI, and for leaving the scene of an accident in January.

3) Steve Howe: Howe went from National League Rookie of the Year in 1980 to a rehab clinic in 1983. The lefty could not stay away from the alcohol or the cocaine. He had a revival in 1994, recording 15 saves and a 1.80 ERA as the Yankees' closer—King George was always the one to give him another chance. But Howe couldn't repeat those numbers and finished his baseball career in 1997. He had a relatively low-key retirement as a contractor in Arizona before a tragic accident in California in 2006, when his pickup truck rolled over and killed him. Toxicology reports showed Howe had a boatload of meth in his system. Some demons never die.

2) Pete Rose: Yes, he can't get into the Hall of Fame. For now. But the dude has a smokin' hot Playboy Playmate girlfriend.Listen, he let us down. He bet on the game. I just wish we could let it go. Remember when you saw "Nightmare on Elm Street" and pissed your pants? Now, you see it and it looks like "The Smurfs." That's how I see Rose. He hurt himself. There's been plenty others who have done way worse and got five more chances.

1) O.J. Simpson: Do we have to explain? He went from Hall of Famer, "Naked Gun" star, and "Mr. Hertz" to the butt of every joke about the '90s. And, oh yeah, he allegedly killed two people. The Juice just can't stay out of trouble. In 2008, he was convicted in a bizarre burglary of his own sports memorabilia, finally landing him in an orange jumpsuit.



http://bleacherreport.com/articles/3...istory#page/21

I'm surprised they left out Lance Rentzel. He went from Dallas Cowboy all-pro, married to a gorgeous female celebrity of the day (Joey Heatherton), to a laughing stock/state of disgrace when he was arrested for exposing himself to a 10 year old girl.

http://www.talkabouttennis.com/forum...ies/cheesy.gif

Marion Jones was the only one I felt sorry for.

Seriously? Or is this a typo?

I think it's correct. I read it somewhere else.

I could have swore the correct number was 121.....

Good one!

I'd take out Pete Rose's name entirely. He GAMBLED. No drugs, no guns, no PED, no alcohol, no sexual assault, no bankruptcy, no hitting anybody, no cheating on his taxes. He just placed BETS. The article states it, but what he did pales in comparison to, i.e., Rothslisberger's recent forays.
Heck, I would include Alex Rodriguez there (who admitted to PED), Sammy Sosa, Palmeiro or McGwyre before putting in Rose.

Yeah... Apparently he forgot to list the neighbour's daughter, which was pretty much the nail in the marital coffin.

It was still a fall from grace considering what a big star he was and what a big problem he had http://forum.talkabouttennis.com/ima...lies/smile.png It isn't just the sport the athletes represent...it is what they have done to themselves after having such a big measure of success that entails the fall from grace. Does the actual cause of the fall matter? Is gambling all that different from drugs? (As in recreational drugs) Nope.

Pete Rose, IIRC, bet on his own games. That is why he should never make the Hall of Fame.

Exactly. This is a big no no in any sport...and I believe for the longest time, baseball turned a blind eye to what Pete was doing......