Curtis Whitley: Dead at 39
Former NFL player, Curtis Whitley, was found dead in the bathroom of this trailer home by friends Sunday night.
Whitley, 39, played for three NFL teams in the 90s: San Diego, Carolina and Oakland and had a rough six-year career. He started out a fifth-round draft pick with San Diego for three seasons of play but was let go when he was arrested for drunk driving. He was resigned to the team after a 26-day stay at the Betty Ford rehab clinic.
He then moved over to the Carolina Panthers and stayed for two seasons. He was suspended in the second season for a violation of the drug policy and then released before training camp began for the following season.
He played a final year in the NFL with the Oakland Raiders and was suspended all of the 1998 for again violating the drug policy.
He revealed in a book that he wrote in 1997 that he used crystal methmethamphetamine often since 1992 which caused the downfall of his NFL career.
There is no sign of foul play in his death but it remains under investigation and the cause of death will be known once the autopsy results are returned.
I played HS football with CW and I still remember his great attitude and winning smile. Our lives went in different directions but i always keep my big bro in my prayers…. Curtis, sorry i didn’t get to talk to you since school, but remember, you’ll always be missed…