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NFL suspends Odell Thurman, Jerramy Stevens

Former Bengals linebacker Odell Thurman and Buccaneers receiver Jerramy Stevens have been suspended for violations of the NFL Substance Abuse Policy.

It will be the third year Thurman, 24, has been out of football. He was reinstated by the league April 21 after missing the 2006 and ‘07 seasons.

Thurman was released by the Cincinnati Bengals after a prolonged absence from the team following his grandmother’s death May 12.

According to the NFL, he “will not be considered for reinstatement until after the 2008 season.”

Out of a job and out of the league. Ugh!

The NFL suspended Stevens the first two games of the 2008 season and fined him an amount equal to a game check as the result of a drunk driving conviction September 2007. The suspension begins August 30, leaving him eligible to participate in training camp and preseason games.

Stevens was suspended for one game in 2007 following a charge of DUI and marijuana possession in Arizona in March. The Seattle Seahawks, his team at the time, released him.

The Buccaneers ignited a minor firestorm by re-signing Stevens to a contract after a highly uncomplimentary story about him appeared in the January 31, 2008 Seattle Times involving a sexual assault incident while he was playing for the University of Washington Huskies.

A segment of the Buccaneers fans expected that he would not return.

Stevens, 28, says he’s reformed.

“I’ve become a better person in life,” he said quoting from a story appearing on theledger.com. “The lifestyle I was leading is not the way I live now. My approach in life is way different from when I was 22 or 19.”

His teammates continue to support him according to the same story in theledger.com.

This entry was posted on Friday, June 6th, 2008 at 6:44 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.