Aaron Hernandez isn’t the first athlete to be implicated in a serious crime. And he won’t be the last to suffer the consequences of being identified as a suspect either. Thirteen years ago, Ray Lewis wasn’t able to appear on the Wheaties box with the Super Bowl-champion Ravens or record Disney’s corny “I’m going to Disney World” because he pled guilty to perjury during a murder trial the previous year. History repeated itself with Kobe Bryant's lost endorsements in 2003. However, ten years after things blew over, they are two of the most prominent pitchmen in sports.
Hernandez will probably never achieve the same status as Bryant and Lewis, but he’s now finding himself in a similar predicament. On Friday, Hernandez lost his endorsement as a result of the bad press but this could be just the beginning of his financial woes.
Via L.A. Times:
CytoSport, a Benicia, Calif.-based company that makes Muscle Milk and other supplements for athletes, said Friday it was ending Hernandez's endorsement contract, effective immediately, because of the investigation.
Hernandez should recover from losing this small endorsement check. Last summer he inked a five-year deal, $37 million that included a $12.5 million signing bonus. That's good money for the second-best tight end on most rosters, but Hernandez is worth it in the Pats two-tight end scheme. However, this could just be the beginning if Hernandez is implicated and faces a lengthy trial. Under the new CBA, the Patriots could also retrieve Hernandez's signing bonus if he is suspended or imprisoned.
This is just another example of not only how the owners emerged victorious from the 2011 labor dispute, but them running up the score on the player's union.
