What Aaron Hernandez's Former Teammates Said About Him

In 2010, Aaron Hernandez achieved what countless people only dream of: He was drafted by the New England Patriots. However, what unfolded over the following years was a series of very public tragedies, set against the background of a young rising star in the NFL. Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado were shot and killed in 2012, just a month before Hernandez signed a contract for a whopping $40 million. Only months later, a lawsuit was filed alleging that Hernandez had shot another man in the face in Florida. Then, four months after that, the body of Odin Lloyd — who had been dating the sister of Hernandez's fiancée — was discovered, and about a year after being arrested in connection with Lloyd's death, Hernandez was indicted on charges connected to the murders of de Abreu and Furtado.

The Patriots dropped their young star after his arrest, but the nation was captivated by what unfolded. Hernandez was found guilty in Lloyd's murder case and acquitted in the other, but was still handed a mandatory life sentence.

The story, says CBS News, didn't end when Hernandez was taken to prison. On April 19, 2017 — just over two years since his sentencing — he died by suicide in his cell. Shortly after, The Washington Post reported that an autopsy revealed that he had been suffering from the advanced stages of traumatic brain injury likely caused by repeat hits in football. So, did his teammates see anything amiss? What did they have to say?

An investigation from The Boston Globe found a common thread that ran through all those they spoke to about Aaron Hernandez: He was unpredictable. Sometimes, he was the nicest person on the planet. Other times? Not so much.

Reporters got transcripts of conversations with Brandon Beam, a friend and former teammate from Hernandez's days playing at Bristol Central. Beam was involved with Hernandez's first run-in with the police as a player for the Patriots, in an incident that came after law enforcement responded to reports of a fight. Beam later said that they should have been arrested earlier — he had been pulled over doing 120 in a 55 mph zone — but Hernandez had leveraged his position on the Patriots to get them out of it. That had led to the argument that attracted police again, and according to Beam, that wasn't the Hernandez he knew from high school.

Bean described him to Rolling Stone, painting the picture of someone who was emotionally much, much younger than his peers: "The guy would do anything to crack us up. Stuff his lunch in his mouth in a single bite, or take a booger that was hanging out and eat that s***."

Not all comments made regarding Aaron Hernandez were made in public, or, were meant for public ears. When The Boston Globe sifted through all they could find about Hernandez, they discovered a 2011 conversation between his then-teammate, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, and his University of Florida ex-teammate, Tim Tebow. The Pats were playing the Broncos in Denver, and the two had the chance to chat face-to-face briefly — and their conversation was caught by microphones.

Tebow, it seems, had attempted to take a few players under his wing while they were still in college — including Hernandez. He ultimately reached out to Brady for a little back-up, and in the exchange, Brady told him, "I'm trying to watch over Aaron and Brandon [Spikes, another Gator-turned-Patriot]."

Tebow reassured him: "I appreciate that, man. They're good guys." But, it seems, they hadn't taken many of his lessons with them. Brady replied: "Yeah, [but] a lot to handle."

One of the many people The Boston Globe spoke to was Dane Fletcher, the Patriot linebacker who joined the team alongside Aaron Hernandez, and faced off against him when it was time to run drills. Trash-talking between the two only escalated, and it led to a locker room confrontation that could have turned brutal. It wouldn't have been the first time they'd exchanged punches, Fletcher recalled, but instead, Hernandez — on the heels of ridiculing him — said, "But here's the deal. I respect you."

The newly-discovered respect turned into the sort of relationship where Fletcher was introduced to Hernandez's other friends. That meant Fletcher knew how shady those friends were, could testify to seeing police question the group, and that he knew that Hernandez had an apartment that he referred to as his "side place." Fletcher elaborated, saying that was where the illicit stuff (such as drugs and weapons) was stored and went down.

After Hernandez was arrested and released by the Patriots, The Boston Globe says Bill Belichick headed up a press conference to address the matter. Saying, "I'm personally disappointed and hurt in a situation like this," he had more to say about it behind the scenes. It was Fletcher who explained they were simply told never to speak of him again.

Only days after Aaron Hernandez was both arrested and released by the Patriots, Deion Branch gave a statement that was picked up by The Albany Herald (via ESPN). He had nothing but good things to say about Hernandez: "Aaron is a great guy and a great friend of mine and a great teammate. I love him to death, and it was shocking to hear his name involved in this situation. I truly hope and pray he doesn't have any dealings with it."

Branch — who was a wide receiver for the Patriots when Hernandez started playing in 2010 — went on to stress that no matter who was responsible for Odin Lloyd's death, justice needed to be served: "Most of all, what we as Americans need to understand is that is somebody's child that was a victim."

But at the time, Branch was certain that Hernandez's name would be cleared. "That's my guy, man. That's my guy. It really shocked me. He was a great kid."

Tim Tebow's relationship with Aaron Hernandez went a long way back — all the way to the multiple times Tebow interceded on his behalf at the University of Florida. According to what The Boston Globe discovered, that included going to coach Urban Meyer and convincing him not to throw the problem tight end off the team.

Meyer's recruitment practices would later come under some massive scrutiny after Hernandez's death and even before the bombshell that he had been diagnosed with a severely advanced case of CTE. Along with defending Meyer to ESPN on the heels of Hernandez's death, Tebow made a few comments about the teammate he had tried so hard to protect.

"It's just heartbreaking and sad, and all my thoughts and prayers go out to all the families that were involved," he said. And then, he cut that whole line of questioning short: "I understand why you have to ask all the questions; that's part of doing your job. Part of mine is listening to instruction, and we've been told not to talk about it."

When Aaron Hernandez was playing ball for the University of Florida, two of his teammates were also two of his best friends. That was Mike Pouncey and his twin brother, Maurkice (who went on to play for the Dolphins and the Steelers, respectively). The Pouncey brothers remained Hernandez's close friends throughout his trial and conviction, and Mike would later tell USA Today that he had spoken to Hernandez on the night before he died by suicide:

"He was in great spirits. He was excited ... Obviously, I don't condone any of the things that he was accused of, but just to have a friend I was so close with, that I felt like he was my brother and I know that he felt the same way, it's tough. It's tough for anyone to have a loss in their family, but that one right there hit me and my brother really hard."

The conversation came not long after Hernandez was acquitted of the murder charges that had followed the 2012 deaths, and Pouncey said that he was nothing but shocked by the news of Hernandez's death. He also posted on Instagram, calling Hernandez his friend and brother before adding, "Through thick and thin right or wrong we never left each other's side. Today my heart hurts as I got the worse news I could have imagined. ... we will meet again rest easy!"

If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline​ by dialing 988 or by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.