Lynch's Statement

[John from Riverside]

"Marshawn speak":

 

"Uhh...uhhh....I didn't do nuffin' to nobody. 'Da po-lice can't prove sh-t, an' I ain't gonna let some fat assed white B word get me no felony rap. F-ck dat."

 

The lawyer most certainly did help Marshawn, I would say.

 

I dont agree with your take on this whole thing but that made me laugh out loud in my office....

[B Rob]

As long as the specter of the civil suit looms, it's perfectly understandable. Even if Lynch were the most skilled orator of the age, Caffery would still be right in NOT letting him make statements, written or otherwise. Until the civil matter is resolved, even the most sincere of Lynch's feelings on the matter need to be kept under wraps. That entire statement was a salvo across the bow of the future plaintif.

 

GO BILLS!!!

Ding ding ding

 

The thing that peaople are forgetting in all of this is that it isn't over as far as Lynch is concerned.And another thing those that are upset over the fact that he hasn't spoke about it in public is the civil case.He has to protect himself as much as he can in this case.You have to assume that what he is saying is the truth not what you think happened that night.He has the right to remain silent and in my opinion he is smart in doing so.Just as he has the right to remain silent you don't have the right to know what is going on in this case.This is a personal matter and it will be taken care of and you only get to know about what he does in his personal life if he wants you to.Some of you people need to get over yourselves and stop treating this like he has done something wrong to you because he hasn't.He is in a serious situation and needs to get past it without you guys being in his ass about it.

 

I'm sure everyone of you guys that are so upset with Lynch would want the same kind of media attention thrown at you if you made a mistake.My opinion of ther man hasn't changed and yours shouldn't either he hasn't done anything to you or your family.

[Turk]

I dont agree with your take on this whole thing but that made me laugh out loud in my office....

I can smell the cross burning ...........little racial don't ya think. Can't we get back to how much Mike Schopp sucks?

[JasoninMT]

Endzone - The paraphrase, is insulting at best.

 

KTD - I agree his letter seemed a bit 'polished', but if you or I did the same thing and were important enough to have to write a public apology, you can bet we'd have a lawyer help write it and it wouldn't completely be our words... There is a probable civil case coming, so he has to be careful what he says... If there were one thing I sorta wish he'd stated, it's that he would take care of the victim's emergency care... (The trip to the hospital right after - not the afterthoughts when she (and her attorney) realized there was a potential money train).

 

I accept what Marshawn says as fact. I accept his apology as a fan, and I'm willing to forget it. I'm happy that he chose to make a statement before walking in to plead guilty. He didn't deny everything and claim someone was out to get him or whatever. I doubt there will be any further issues other than a civil case which he'll hopefully be able to settle reasonably out of court. I like that he's losing his license for a while... it's more than the slap on the wrist fine to have to deal with having a driver for a while... My ex lost her license for 6 months for something stupid (altered license/fake ID) - that was more punishment than the fine she paid.

[Mickey]

Pretty much what most suspected he would say. I can buy his explanation, but I still don't think it was wise for him (or moreover his lawyers) to wait so long to comment, publicly, on the incident. His lawyer, or agent, should have released some sort of statement early on...it will be nice when this whole thing is forgotten. Yes, I realize that everything the Lynch camp was perfectly legal, but that lawyer has to realize that this particular client is not just an average person. Any time he is involved in anything out of the ordinary, gossip an innuendo will swirl. I think his lawyer served him poorly in this case. Even if Lynch gets the lightest of punishments, his reputation took a shot, in somes view. Releasing the same sort of statement two and half or three weeks ago, would have minimized the damage.

Given that the plea was for a violation and not the misdemeanor the DA had talked about for weeks, sounds to me like the atty did a good job. I think his rep would have suffered much worse if the reduced charge he had to plead to was a misdemeanor.

[AJ1]

From reading that lawyer speak, I think we can all agree that nobody will change their minds on what happened based on this letter. If you have been accepting Lynch's alibi all along you will remain satisfied, and if you think he was more culpable than you believe the attorney just typed out whatever BS he had to to make this plea legal.

 

Either way, it's over but not forgotten.

 

Outside of Western NY it's over and forgotton.

[BillsCelticsAngelsBama]

This is a great example of why the internet is great and awful all at the same time. Honestly, this incident was not that big of a deal, because the victim wasn't seriously injured. Those of you worried about PR hits to the Bills and Marshawn just don't get it. This is OVER. The NFL doesn't care now that it has been resolved, without criminal charges. Unless Marshawn gets himself into more trouble down the road, this incident won't amount to a hill of beans during his NFL career or future contract negotiations.

 

Time to move on. If you don't like Marshawn any more because you think he wasn't sincere, then don't ever read any statement put forth by anyone who has an attorney because they're all like that. Marshawn's a young guy who made a mistake, and he's paying his dues.

I'll never forget when my dad set me down and said, "Son, just remember, it isn't a big deal if you hit someone with your vehicle and flee.... as long as the victim isn't seriously injured". But being the inquisitive kid that I was, I responded,"Daddy, if I hit someone with my vehicle and then leave , how will I know whether or not the victim is seriously injured"? Naturally, he responded with the kind and understanding,"Shut the #&$! up and get me a beer out of the fridge"! Thanks Dad !!

[Kelly the Dog]

It does say this at the top:

 

"Mr Lynch and his Attorney Michael P. Cafferty, after completing their investigation and after conferring at length with the District Attorney's Office, make the following statement:"

 

I think that clearly says "Marshawn and I".

Every single sentence, starting with #1, is in the first person, and "I". That clearly says Marshawn and Marshawn only. The fact that it is written on the firm's stationary is the "Marshawn and I".

 

I have no problem with the lawyer crafting the statement, and telling him everything he needs to say. It should simply be from Marshawn though, IMO.

[bills7834]

http://media.buffalonews.com/smedia/2008/0...ffiliate.50.pdf

I'm not sure if it was just rumor, but didn't he text the Head of Security for the Bills shortly after the incident. If so this young lady is going to have a huuuuge payday. They will have him lying to the court. I'm sure the cops already came to his house or his lawyer is an idiot.

[Erik]

I'm not sure if it was just rumor, but didn't he text the Head of Security for the Bills shortly after the incident. If so this young lady is going to have a huuuuge payday. They will have him lying to the court. I'm sure the cops already came to his house or his lawyer is an idiot.

 

The way I understood it he texted the guy after the cops came and impounded his car.

[drnykterstein]

And if he announced he hit her, was glad he hit her, and will hit her again if he gets the opportunity, we can presume he was really at home watching reruns of The Waltons that night?

 

This post is famous now (Riter read it on the radio)

[Kelly the Dog]

I'm not sure if it was just rumor, but didn't he text the Head of Security for the Bills shortly after the incident. If so this young lady is going to have a huuuuge payday. They will have him lying to the court. I'm sure the cops already came to his house or his lawyer is an idiot.

The report was that he texted the security guy at least six hours after the incident, so not before 9:30 am and well after the police had been to his house.

[VOR]

The way I understood it he texted the guy after the cops came and impounded his car.

Yep. And Cambria said that the texts contained no incriminating evidence.

 

Criminal case solved and over. Next up the civil case. I suspect we might see this go to trial because she'll want a bigger payday than Lynch is willing to give.

[BillsCelticsAngelsBama]

Yep. And Cambria said that the texts contained no incriminating evidence.

 

Criminal case solved and over. Next up the civil case. I suspect we might see this go to trial because she'll want a bigger payday than Lynch is willing to give.

Here's hoping elegantelliotoffen doesn't get a "jury duty" notice in the very near future

[Billadelphia]

His guilty plea has far more weight in the civil suit than any apology would. He could at least apologize to the team and the fans for creating this distraction and not mention the accident. He single handed ruined one of the most optimistic offseason we've had in a while. I was all excited about Poz coming back, McKelvin, Stroud, Mitchell, Edwards, and Hardy but this mess (and all the other sh-- going on in the NFL) has really cooled my excitement.

 

Yeah, you should probably just take some time off from the NFL and this board altogether. Its all ruined.

[Chilly]

Every single sentence, starting with #1, is in the first person, and "I". That clearly says Marshawn and Marshawn only. The fact that it is written on the firm's stationary is the "Marshawn and I".

 

I have no problem with the lawyer crafting the statement, and telling him everything he needs to say. It should simply be from Marshawn though, IMO.

 

Now you've got me really confused. Are you expecting him to issue a letter without his lawyer helping him when he still has civil liability?

[elegantelliotoffen]

Yep. And Cambria said that the texts contained no incriminating evidence.

 

Criminal case solved and over. Next up the civil case. I suspect we might see this go to trial because she'll want a bigger payday than Lynch is willing to give.

 

This case will absolutely NEVER make it to trial, I'll bet a TRILLION dollars.

[Kelly the Dog]

Now you've got me really confused. Are you expecting him to issue a letter without his lawyer helping him when he still has civil liability?

I've already said four different times in this thread the answer to that: Of course not. I think he should have said everything he said in the statement, which is every single thing his lawyer told him to say. Just in different words so it sounded like it came from him.

 

The content is perfect. The execution is completely disingenuous to me because he doesn't communicate like that. If I were the victim, I would have been offended by that statement even if I believed he didn't do it on purpose. Because it never once sounds like Marshawn Lynch is sorry. It sounds like Michael Cafferty is covering all legal bases and his ass while saying that Marshawn is sorry.

 

And like I said four other times, too, I know people do this all the time. It doesn't make it right. And this is a different kind of statement because of who the player is, and what the statement is intended to do.

[BADOLBILZ]

No. I likely would have done exactly what Lynch and Cafferty did, EXCEPT this statement. Marshawn Lynch doesn't talk like that. It made it TOTALLY disingenuous to me for the statement to be so very legal and precise, when Marshawn Lynch as a person is the total opposite of that. They should have gone one of two ways, either release the statement from the lawyer using "Marshawn" and "he" instead of "I", or put ALL of those things in Marshawn-speak. It needs to sound like he is genuinely sorry, and when there is not one sentence in there that sounds like it came from Marshawn Lynch's mouth, it reeks of being contrived, or at least not doing what you want it to do.

 

My opinion of Lynch hasn't changed. I think he exceeded poor decision status weeks ago and moved into the low character district. I think having some rough characters is part of having a good football team, but poor character is another matter. That said, case closed. He is who he is, you now know what to expect, deal with it.

 

Here's my scouting report on Lynch: Good all purpose back, runs very hard but lacks breakaway speed and is not exceptionally quick or elusive and has only average size. Significant concerns about his character.

 

So if he goes 10-11 games without rushing for 100, like last year, I won't be calling for a re-trial like a lot of his current apologists will. If he blames everyone but himself for his poor numbers...what else would you expect? And if he does have a good year, I will EXPECT him to demand a trade because he says the cops harrass him, the media treats him poorly and so on. If he can get a fat second contract 3 years earlier than normal by simply demanding and receiving a trade, why wouldn't he? I'm sorry for the negative view, but you can't trust unaccountable people.

 

We've been down this road before with Willis. Willis enjoyed unsurpassed popularity in his first year on the field with the Bills. But being a 'Canes fan, I knew he wasn't a great competitor. He was Clinton Portis' B word at the U and if Frank Gore hadn't gotten hurt Willis might have entered the NFL as a fullback. I wasn't the least bit surprised when he lost motivation in his second year. When he showed a maddening tendency to only bring his "A" game on select weekends and a lack of concern about his conditioning.....that's part of the package with Willis. I don't think the Bills ever understood that and kept expecting the guy to become self motivated. As a result, they ended up trading him prior to a walk year where he was poised to put up monster numbers and had to use a #1 pick on Lynch. Hopefully, they can see the signs with Lynch and act accordingly to assure they aren't desperately seeking a tailback in round #1 again anytime soon.

[elegantelliotoffen]

My opinion of Lynch hasn't changed. I think he exceeded poor decision status weeks ago and moved into the low character district. I think having some rough characters is part of having a good football team, but poor character is another matter. That said, case closed. He is who he is, you now know what to expect, deal with it.

 

Here's my scouting report on Lynch: Good all purpose back, runs very hard but lacks breakaway speed and is not exceptionally quick or elusive and has only average size. Significant concerns about his character.

 

So if he goes 10-11 games without rushing for 100, like last year, I won't be calling for a re-trial like a lot of his current apologists will. If he blames everyone but himself for his poor numbers...what else would you expect? And if he does have a good year, I will EXPECT him to demand a trade because he says the cops harrass him, the media treats him poorly and so on. If he can get a fat second contract 3 years earlier than normal by simply demanding and receiving a trade, why wouldn't he? I'm sorry for the negative view, but you can't trust unaccountable people.

 

We've been down this road before with Willis. Willis enjoyed unsurpassed popularity in his first year on the field with the Bills. But being a 'Canes fan, I knew he wasn't a great competitor. He was Clinton Portis' B word at the U and if Frank Gore hadn't gotten hurt Willis might have entered the NFL as a fullback. I wasn't the least bit surprised when he lost motivation in his second year. When he showed a maddening tendency to only bring his "A" game on select weekends and a lack of concern about his conditioning.....that's part of the package with Willis. I don't think the Bills ever understood that and kept expecting the guy to become self motivated. As a result, they ended up trading him prior to a walk year where he was poised to put up monster numbers and had to use a #1 pick on Lynch. Hopefully, they can see the signs with Lynch and act accordingly to assure they aren't desperately seeking a tailback in round #1 again anytime soon.

 

Off the field I don't think he's a bad guy, he's just a very stupid and shortsighted guy. On the field I've never had a problem with him, I'd consider him a "high football character" guy.