Chris Henry – Our Obituary

I can’t imagine that many 26-year-olds think about what their obituary would say. But if Chris Henry ever did, he would surely know that the opening line “Cincinnati wide receiver Chris Henry” would always be preceded by “Controversial”. It is, perhaps, painfully appropriate that he should leave this world in such dramatic circumstances.

When you are watching documentaries about reformed characters, the bitter twist at the end always revolves around tragedy striking just when the subject seems to have turned things around, sorted their act out. That is not a million miles away from the Chris Henry story.

Born in Belle Chasse, Louisiana (population 9.5k), Henry played football at high school and later in college at West Virginia. In his freshman season, Henry gained 1000 yards receiving and scored 10 touchdowns in the process. However, it was in his sophomore year where his demons first surfaced.

In a game against Rutgers in 2004, Henry was given an un-sportsmanlike penalty for over celebrating a long reception. Later in the game Henry reacted angrily when a Rutgers player (who was jumping for the same ball) landed on him and failed to move quickly. Henry threw the ball at him and swept the player’s legs from under him. This was enough to earn him an ejection. Coach Rich Rodriguez (now with Michigan) blasted Henry as “an embarrassment to himself and the program”. And that from a coach with a history of running programmes that lack in family values.

Whether Rich-Rod overreacted or not, mud sticks. Despite the numbers he put up in a top college programme, only 1 NFL team invited him to a pre-draft visit; the Bengals. They felt he was worth the gamble and took him in the 3^rd round. Initially however, Henry did not repay the Cincinnati faithful trust in him.

Despite contributing on the field as a rookie, it wasn’t long (3 months to be exact) before Henry was in trouble with the police. Having been stopped for speeding in Kentucky, Henry was found with marijuana in his shoe and didn’t possess a valid driving licence.  He avoided jail time.

It was his next misdemeanour that put him among “You’ve got to be kidding me” folklore, the level of which guys like Mike Tyson get associated with. Not content with drug crime, Henry cranked it up later that same season by getting arrested for gun charges…wearing his own Bengals uniform. Again, no jail time.

Now in his criminal element Henry decided to further diversify his rap sheet. In April 2006 Henry was accused of sexually assaulting an 18 year old after allowing her and two friends to drink underage in a hotel in Kentucky. With inconsistencies about the whole scenario, Henry served just 2 days jail time.

Still not content with his impressive efforts to ruin a promising NFL career (Henry scored 15 receiving touchdown’s in his first 2 years for the Bengals) Henry was caught drink driving in June 2006 which finally prompted the league to act. In his first of multiple NFL suspensions, Henry sat for 2 games. As part of commissioner Roger Goodell’s new personal conduct policy, Henry’s transgressions were reviewed and he was suspended for the first 8 games of the following season.

The week before his ban was due to end in November 2007, Henry was arrested again assaulting a valet and once more a month later violating his probation from the “You’ve got to be kidding me” arrest. At this point Chris Henry had become as adept at avoiding jail time, as he was at avoiding Safeties in the secondary. Only 2 days in jail served despite the number of arrests approaching his jersey number.

Moving into March 2008, Henry was arrested for another assault, placed under house arrest and subsequently waived by the Bengals. His career, it seemed, was over.

But in an unexpected move, the Bengals re-signed Chris Henry in August the same year, to a 2-year contract. The move was universally panned. Marvin Lewis was made to look foolish for saying only a month earlier that the team had no interest in bringing him back, and with good cause. Commissioner Goodell had already gone on record by saying clubs who bring back trouble players could be penalised by taking away draft picks. It really was an indefensible move.

"I think they're trying to tell us something"

This is the part of the movie where our subject is shown in a Rocky IV style montage turning it all around to 80’s pop rock.

Chris Henry really did turn things around. He got in touch with Michael Irvin who acted as a mentor for West Virginia team-mate Adam “Pacman” Jones, and genuinely seemed determined to turn it around. He was spending more time with his kids and his fiancéé. In a revealing pre-season interview,  Bengals QB Carson Palmer, he described Henry as having “the best pre-season of anyone I’ve ever seen.” To support that glowing recommendation, Henry started strongly with a pair of TD’s and was on course for a career high in average receiving yards (19.7), which also lead the team before breaking his arm against the Ravens. It would be the last game he ever played.

Carson Palmer knew that Chris Henry would fuel Cincinnati's revival

Sadly, this is the part of the movie where the picture fades to back before low notes are played on a piano.

Just yesterday, Chris was hospitalised after falling out of the back of a pick up truck that was being driven by his fiancéé, Loleini Tonga. Witnesses say that Henry got into the back of the truck at a home owned by the Tonga family. They also say that he was banging on the top of the truck using the cast from his arm, for half a mile before Henry fell out of the vehicle and on to the road. The police are still investigating the incident and have not ruled out homicide due to the way Tonga was driving the truck, provoking claims that she deliberately swerved to eject Henry from the back.

Unquestionably talented, unquestionably troubled yet unquestionably reformed. This passing of a controversial figure in controversial circumstances is unquestionably tragic.