What do you think?
Rate this book
Intercepted: The Rise and Fall of NFL Cornerback Darryl Henley
Hailing from suburban Los Angeles, raised by supportive parents, and educated at a boys-only parochial school, Darryl Henley had it all. He earned a history degree from UCLA, became a first-team All American for the Bruins in 1988, and was a rising star as the starting cornerback for the LA Rams in the early nineties. How Henley, in the space of three short years, went from golden NFL role model to federal inmate is one of the most bizarre stories in the annals of sport-stars-turned-criminal. The product of eight years of investigative research and over one hundred interviews, Intercepted takes us into Henley’s fourth season in the NFL, when he met Rams cheerleader Tracy Donaho and bumped into a boyhood friend named Willie McGowan, a onetime youth-league standout who had since turned to drug trafficking. Henley, Donaho, and McGowan embark on a scheme to transport cocaine that lands Henley in federal prison, where he attempts to arrange a Mafia hit on the sentencing judge and Donaho, who had been the star witness against Henley at his trial. Detailing how one of the best and brightest of our professional athletes destroyed himself through temptation, arrogance, and anger at a justice system that he felt had failed him, Intercepted is also a cautionary tale about American culture, as disturbing as it is impossible to ignore.
520 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2012
6 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 1, 2024
Ghetto culture, hip hop culture, call it what you will, this guy wasn't it. But he wanted to be. In HS I felt the desire to be seen as a tough guy, even though I wasn't. In college, wanna-be gangsters called me a pussy. Only later did I realize what a joke all that was. But I can understand where Henly was coming from.
When I watch The First 48 & other real-life crimes, its usually young people trying to be "the Man" and trying to be gangsters. They post on their FB photos of them with guns and money, they admire the Rapper, gold chains, gangster, the Ghetto-Hip Hop Culture and try to emulate it. The problem is if you look like a gangster, carry guns & drugs, and act like a gangster, at some point, you cross the invisible line & you have become a gangster.
While reading this book you can clearly see the freight train coming his way. But you also understand the allure and why he wanted it so badly. As for his crimes, imagine you wanted to intimidate someone to repay the loan you gave them, and you bring a gun to threaten them. They are not impressed and fight you. The gun goes off and you are charged with murder. Or just some scenario "where no one was supposed to get hurt". You didn't mean for it to happen that way, but it did. Henley made some very bad decisions & got what was coming to him. Still, you feel bad for him. I can't say this was a book I enjoyed. It took over a month for me to finish. Informative sure, but just a sad story. Aloha Joe B.
When I watch The First 48 & other real-life crimes, its usually young people trying to be "the Man" and trying to be gangsters. They post on their FB photos of them with guns and money, they admire the Rapper, gold chains, gangster, the Ghetto-Hip Hop Culture and try to emulate it. The problem is if you look like a gangster, carry guns & drugs, and act like a gangster, at some point, you cross the invisible line & you have become a gangster.
While reading this book you can clearly see the freight train coming his way. But you also understand the allure and why he wanted it so badly. As for his crimes, imagine you wanted to intimidate someone to repay the loan you gave them, and you bring a gun to threaten them. They are not impressed and fight you. The gun goes off and you are charged with murder. Or just some scenario "where no one was supposed to get hurt". You didn't mean for it to happen that way, but it did. Henley made some very bad decisions & got what was coming to him. Still, you feel bad for him. I can't say this was a book I enjoyed. It took over a month for me to finish. Informative sure, but just a sad story. Aloha Joe B.
July 6, 2018
A sad case of a life gone wrong
This book gives a good story of how a good man can go very very wrong. I was left feeling sorry for all involved and found the racial politics distracted from the truth. A man tried to impress friends and went very wrong as he admits himself.
This book gives a good story of how a good man can go very very wrong. I was left feeling sorry for all involved and found the racial politics distracted from the truth. A man tried to impress friends and went very wrong as he admits himself.
January 25, 2025
Fascinating story about a player most have never heard of... Initially felt sorry for him but his behavior post sentencing inexcusable... interesting read
December 29, 2012
Impressive piece of work from a talented investigative journalist. This riveting book provides a glimpse into the life of an NFL player in 1990's Los Angeles, the shameful cracks in our legal, law enforcement and DEA system. The book takes readers on a journey where emotions and character loyalties switch as new truths are revealed and a startling spiral of events unfold. It was a memoir, courtroom drama and cautionary tale in one story
I would recommend this book to anyone who is a football fan, or a reader interested in the above genres. Worth the read.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is a football fan, or a reader interested in the above genres. Worth the read.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews