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Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play in the NFL
Discloses the names of the convicted criminals in the NFL, the stunning severity of their crimes, & why they're still playing.
432 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
10 people are currently reading
156 people want to read
About the author
Jeff Benedict
21 books176 followersJeff Benedict conducted the first national study on sexual assault and athletes. He has published three books on athletes and crime, including a blistering exposé on the NFL, Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play in the NFL, and Public Heroes, Private Felons: Athletes and Crimes Against Women. He is a lawyer and an investigative journalist who has written five books.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 22, 2009
An interesting look into the fallen stars of the NFL. A good book for NFL fans and anyone interested in the fall of public personalities. I am a fan of the NFL, not the latter..therefore I only give it three stars...well written, interesting read.
November 29, 2010
Couldn't quite force myself to read every detail. This book documents some very disturbing violent behavior trends among many athletes in the NFL. I read it because of its author, Jeff Benedict.
August 2, 2011
The Book May Be Dated, the Story is Not ..., September 29, 2010
I admit I purchased this book without looking at the publishing date and thought I'd wasted my money when I saw that it was written in 1998. Much to my surprise, this book definitely proved to be a worthy read as it represents a historical snapshot of an issue that arguably exists today: professional athletes, specifically football players, and serious crime.
"Pros and Cons" is the product of Jeff Benedict and Don Yaeger's ostensibly exhaustive research of professional football players' criminal behavior and the general unwillingness of their employer (the NFL) to recognize the problem, let alone resolve it. Although the book may seem to allude to professional football players as being nothing but criminals, the authors never make this claim. What is clearly illustrated, however, is the forgive-and-forget nature of the NFL when it comes to its employees (players and coaches) committing crimes ... serious crimes. In fact, the book portrays the NFL as the Wild West, a new frontier where lawlessness goes relatively unchecked.
Benedict and Yaeger chose to examine the 1996/97 season rosters to research the criminal history of a sample of the 1,500+ players in the league. The results are somewhat shocking, but not in the sense that you conclude the NFL is nothing but a league of thugs. The shock comes from the manner in which the coaches, team owners and the NFL itself find ways to defend or even excuse the actions of some players for the sake of protecting their "investment" or to avoid compromising a team or the league's future. Each chapter highlights the more notorious crimes of specific players and in each case, the NFL is clearly illustrated as a closed and exclusive society with the power to police its own personnel in the manner it chooses, separate from the rest of society. Although most, if not all, of the players documented in "Pros and Cons" are not currently active in the NFL, the names are familiar due to either gridiron greatness (Cornelius Bennett) or criminal notoriety (Lawrence Phillips). Many of the "offenders" portrayed throughout the book had criminal records prior to entering the NFL and the authors strongly suggest that the protective privileges afforded to many NFL players start as early as high school.
The criminal charges detailed in the book include serious crimes, such as: assault, drug trafficking, rape and attempted murder. Sadly, a common denominator representing a majority of the cases presented is domestic violence/abuse. Most of the players profiled, regardless of the seriousness of the offense, receive nothing but warnings and suspended sentences from the courts. The authors present a plausible argument that the influence of the NFL may be responsible for such leniency with the judicial results. However, it is the NFL itself that is vilified by the book by being painted as the ever-forgiving father of a problem child who excuses his son's actions with a simple "boys will be boys" attitude. Many of the incidents feature coaches, team owners and the NFL hierarchy as protecting (to the point of coddling) or even worse, ignoring, serious and often violent criminal activity of players. In fact, most of the players referenced in the book faced no further punishment from their employer (NFL) than maybe sitting out a game or two ... sometimes with pay.
There are two chapters that stand out because they involve players who actually paid a price for their criminal activity and faced prison sentences. One case involved a player that was so persistently reckless and arrogant with his drug dealing (to the point of plotting a murder) that even the NFL couldn't save him. The other detailed the most egregious crime that any player could commit ... gambling on league games. Ironically, the chapter on Art Schlichter stands out head-and-shoulders above the rest ... for his sins were so evil that the NFL didn't WANT to protect him.
The book is a fast and entertaining read that details more than a typical ESPN or sports page gloss-over. An appendix at the end of the book alphabetically lists the names of players from the 96/97 season facing charges and lists the alleged crime and the result ... it is revealing as well. More importantly, the subject matter presented in the book rings true today. Recent headlines indicate the same coddling exists for today's players as Ben Roethlisberger, Ray Lewis and Braylon Edwards come to mind. Some players are facing the music, such as Plaxico Burress and Michael Vick. However, with the enthusiasm surrounding Vick's resurgence as a playmaker following a stint in federal prison (for dog fighting), the forgive-and-forget attitude still prevails in the NFL as long as there is money to be made. It would be great if the authors teamed up to write a follow-up to "Pros and Cons".
I admit I purchased this book without looking at the publishing date and thought I'd wasted my money when I saw that it was written in 1998. Much to my surprise, this book definitely proved to be a worthy read as it represents a historical snapshot of an issue that arguably exists today: professional athletes, specifically football players, and serious crime.
"Pros and Cons" is the product of Jeff Benedict and Don Yaeger's ostensibly exhaustive research of professional football players' criminal behavior and the general unwillingness of their employer (the NFL) to recognize the problem, let alone resolve it. Although the book may seem to allude to professional football players as being nothing but criminals, the authors never make this claim. What is clearly illustrated, however, is the forgive-and-forget nature of the NFL when it comes to its employees (players and coaches) committing crimes ... serious crimes. In fact, the book portrays the NFL as the Wild West, a new frontier where lawlessness goes relatively unchecked.
Benedict and Yaeger chose to examine the 1996/97 season rosters to research the criminal history of a sample of the 1,500+ players in the league. The results are somewhat shocking, but not in the sense that you conclude the NFL is nothing but a league of thugs. The shock comes from the manner in which the coaches, team owners and the NFL itself find ways to defend or even excuse the actions of some players for the sake of protecting their "investment" or to avoid compromising a team or the league's future. Each chapter highlights the more notorious crimes of specific players and in each case, the NFL is clearly illustrated as a closed and exclusive society with the power to police its own personnel in the manner it chooses, separate from the rest of society. Although most, if not all, of the players documented in "Pros and Cons" are not currently active in the NFL, the names are familiar due to either gridiron greatness (Cornelius Bennett) or criminal notoriety (Lawrence Phillips). Many of the "offenders" portrayed throughout the book had criminal records prior to entering the NFL and the authors strongly suggest that the protective privileges afforded to many NFL players start as early as high school.
The criminal charges detailed in the book include serious crimes, such as: assault, drug trafficking, rape and attempted murder. Sadly, a common denominator representing a majority of the cases presented is domestic violence/abuse. Most of the players profiled, regardless of the seriousness of the offense, receive nothing but warnings and suspended sentences from the courts. The authors present a plausible argument that the influence of the NFL may be responsible for such leniency with the judicial results. However, it is the NFL itself that is vilified by the book by being painted as the ever-forgiving father of a problem child who excuses his son's actions with a simple "boys will be boys" attitude. Many of the incidents feature coaches, team owners and the NFL hierarchy as protecting (to the point of coddling) or even worse, ignoring, serious and often violent criminal activity of players. In fact, most of the players referenced in the book faced no further punishment from their employer (NFL) than maybe sitting out a game or two ... sometimes with pay.
There are two chapters that stand out because they involve players who actually paid a price for their criminal activity and faced prison sentences. One case involved a player that was so persistently reckless and arrogant with his drug dealing (to the point of plotting a murder) that even the NFL couldn't save him. The other detailed the most egregious crime that any player could commit ... gambling on league games. Ironically, the chapter on Art Schlichter stands out head-and-shoulders above the rest ... for his sins were so evil that the NFL didn't WANT to protect him.
The book is a fast and entertaining read that details more than a typical ESPN or sports page gloss-over. An appendix at the end of the book alphabetically lists the names of players from the 96/97 season facing charges and lists the alleged crime and the result ... it is revealing as well. More importantly, the subject matter presented in the book rings true today. Recent headlines indicate the same coddling exists for today's players as Ben Roethlisberger, Ray Lewis and Braylon Edwards come to mind. Some players are facing the music, such as Plaxico Burress and Michael Vick. However, with the enthusiasm surrounding Vick's resurgence as a playmaker following a stint in federal prison (for dog fighting), the forgive-and-forget attitude still prevails in the NFL as long as there is money to be made. It would be great if the authors teamed up to write a follow-up to "Pros and Cons".
January 1, 2015
One of the saddest books I've ever read, but very important book for today . . . just as needed as it was when written more than ten years ago. "When it comes to criminal conduct of our athletes, someone has to step up. Someone must send the message that Sunday's heroes can no longer be Tuesday's wife beaters or Wednesday's rapists." They propose: "any player whose pre-NFL criminal history details a pattern of arrests for serious crimes should not be draft-eligible [...] and "Any player convicted of a "serious" crime 1) involving violence or drugs after joining the NFL should be banned indefinitely." If these simple guidelines could only be implemented . . . Last quote, Rich Caster formerly of the NY Jets: "if the league doesn't do something they're going to run out of guys to do those United Way commercials. There won't be enough good guys left."
January 20, 2016
Given the recent high profile arrests in the NFL this was an interesting read. I'm not sure how much has changed since 1998 however, which is a problem for the league. Very detailed in term of methodology, people reporting on the Hernandez case should take a look just for the statistical analysis of crime in professional football.
November 12, 2014
Graphic and detailed accounts of the crimes of players from the late 90's. The chapters on domestic violence and rape show how long the NFL has been sweeping it all under the rug. At some point, I will leave you NFL.....
August 11, 2013
Pretty interesting
September 3, 2013
Great Book that shows not all high profile stars should be role models.
October 13, 2014
ANNOYING IN EVERY POSSIBLE WAY. WHAT A DRAG.
February 27, 2016
When pointing out the criminal acts of the various players, it is an eye opening and engaging book. When pontificating at to the cause and effect of such behavior it is a snooze fest.
July 14, 2025
Although a well written book. The research that went into the is appreciated. It was hard for me to listen to the abuse of the wives, girlfriends & acquaintances of these men. I knew it would be interesting, but after a few chapters I just couldn't read anymore. The lack of responsibility by the league, individuals and players, themselves disgusted me. I am a very big football fan. This book just added another layer of disgust and will keep me away from buying merchandise or tickets.
Read
April 17, 2022Some really interesting information. Not a fan of the writing style, but an interesting read. Would have enjoyed it more if it included more well known cases and didn't read so much like a sociology paper.
January 9, 2023
No Surprises
Just finished the book. 2023. Book is 25 years old but there are no big surprises. Kinda funny Robert Craft so righteous!!!!!
Just finished the book. 2023. Book is 25 years old but there are no big surprises. Kinda funny Robert Craft so righteous!!!!!
October 5, 2025
I’ve had this book on my shelf for 15 years. I wish I would have read it sooner.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews