3 Vikings Arrested in Beating

[Vinny]

Here is another reason I do not get into player worship. I love the game, but the players are just people. If this is story is true I hope they throw the book at these punks. Kicking and beating an unconscious man is just pathetic. EJ Henderson has been arrested TWICE for DWI's too, so he is no Einstein.

Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS -- Three Minnesota Vikings players were arrested after a fight outside a downtown bar early Sunday.

Vikings coach Mike Tice confirmed to The Associated Press the arrests of linebackers E.J. Henderson and Mike Nattiel, and tight end Steve Farmer. "I have not been able to find out anything concrete yet," Tice said. The three players were arrested along with a fourth man after a fight outside the Tabu nightclub in the Minneapolis Warehouse District.

A man injured in the fight, Troy Jones, 32, of Brooklyn Center, was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center and then discharged later on Sunday, a hospital spokeswoman said. Police released the names of those arrested, but would not confirm that the three are Vikings players.

Officers said they saw the men who were arrested assaulting the victim, Reier said. After the man was knocked unconscious, he continued to be kicked, punched and stomped on his body and head, police spokesman Ron Reier said. Police had to call in officers from other precincts to disperse the crowd, Reier said.

The Vikings players and the fourth man arrested were released from the Hennepin County Jail later Sunday, a dispatcher said. They could be charged on Monday or Tuesday. Henderson had 27 tackles in 16 games in 2003, and Nattiel had 24 tackles and one interception. Farmer was signed by the Vikings as a rookie free agent in May 2003.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=1816761

[J-Man]

This is why I will never fault a GM or front office guy for taking the B level player that is a solid citizen over an elite star with attitude or legal history.

[StarStruck]

I don't really follow the Vikings, and didn't recognize the players names. Are they elite stars? Either way, they should be held accountable for their behavior.

[StarStruck]

In 2003, the Vikings' charity snowmobile fund-raiser, Arctic Blast, became a drunken debacle and was linked to two criminal sexual conduct charges against a former player and a drunken driving charge, later downgraded to careless driving, against a team executive.

Sad. I thought everyone would be on their best behavior at a charity event.

[theminnesotan]

Listen i am from minnesota and i am not suprised those guys wont start and henderson is a decent player he is a starter because biekert is retiring and he will play inside so he is just some dumb guy who thinks hes hot bleep and thought that he could get away with things that even the biggests stars DON'T

[Hervoyel]

Well, I don't know anything about these players aside from what I've read in this article. Keeping that in mind anyone who does this sort of thing needs to be dealt with by the law whether they are stars and starters or practice squad "never will be's".

I think I'm pretty sure about one other thing. If (as I suspect) Casserly & Co. keep a little black book of guys they wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole even if they were the last avaiable players at a position we had nobody left at, then that book has three new entries.