The Stories Behind These Mug Shots From Once-Legendary Athletes

Sports fans seem to operate with a bit of a double standard: We expect our athletes to be squeaky-clean, upright citizens, yet we seem to love it when they get into trouble. We eat up the details of their indiscretions, and gossip with our buddies about which pro was idiot enough to get a sixth DUI or go on a prostitute-soliciting spree after the big game. And if said idiot can be kind enough to look like a total jackass in the mugshot that's plastered all over our news feed, so much the better. 

These guys were happy to oblige. Legends all, they let their unvarnished humanity shine through for the police cameras, and they have the ridiculous stories to go along with their glamour shots. 

During the 1998 NFL draft, Peyton Manning was the number one pick. Ryan Leaf was number two (via Pro Football Reference). And while Manning became the first starting QB to win a Super Bowl with two different teams (per Fox Sports), Leaf went 4-17 as a starter during a four-year career that has earned him a permanent place in the discussion of Biggest Busts in NFL History. 

ESPN reports that Leaf became West Texas A&M's quarterback coach after retiring from the NFL, but he was placed on leave after asking a student for a pill — which did not bode well for Leaf's future. Leaf had been nursing a private painkiller problem for years, and it became even more public in 2009 when he was arrested on burglary and narcotics charges in Texas, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Then, in 2012, he was arrested on very similar charges not once, but twice in the span of just a few days (per ESPN). This mugshot was taken after the second arrest.

The New York Daily News reported that Leaf had cleaned up his act as of 2016 and was devoting his time to talking to students and others about the dangers of drug abuse. Unfortunately, Leaf was arrested again in 2020, this time on domestic battery charges, according to NBC Palm Springs. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years of probation.

Plaxico Burress seemed destined for success in the NFL. The wide receiver was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2000, giving them several productive seasons before signing a free agent contract with the Giants in 2005. In New York he approached superstardom, playing on the 2007 squad that downed the mighty Patriots in Super Bowl XLII (per The Guardian) and even making the game-winning catch. But unfortunately, that highlight would be among his last due to a 2008 incident that would be tragic if it weren't so ridiculous.

While in a crowded nightclub, Burress managed to shoot himself in the right thigh while fiddling with a gun in his pocket, according to ESPN. To add insult to literal injury, the gun was illegal, which meant a potential 15-year prison sentence. The Giants immediately suspended Burress without pay for the boneheaded move, and he wouldn't play another down for the team. 

The New York Times reports that he ended up serving 20 months, eventually finishing out his career with the New York Jets and back with the Steelers. But he found himself in hot water once more in 2015 for failure to pay over $50,000 in taxes (per ESPN). This earned him five years' probation, with the possibility of going back to jail if he fails to pay up — but that would really be shooting himself in the, er, foot.

By sheer numbers, Darryl Strawberry's Major League Baseball career looks like one that any player would envy. He played 17 seasons beginning in 1983, was a member of four world championship teams, and logged 335 home runs and 1,000 RBIs. But as ESPN reports, there are other numbers as well. During those 17 seasons, there were two domestic violence arrests, three drug-related suspensions, and one tax evasion conviction. 

As if his personal problems weren't enough, Strawberry was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in 1998, which was removed. He was set to attempt a comeback in 1999, but The New York Times reports he was derailed by an incident of drug-fueled solicitation while training with the Yankees' AAA club in Tampa. Authorities said Strawberry yelled something unintelligible at an undercover officer before circling the block and approaching said officer to offer $50 for sex acts. Compounding his bad decision was his cocaine stash, which was cleverly wrapped up in a $20 bill. 

Despite his forlorn expression in his mugshot, he was given only a four-month suspension (per The New York Times), and returned to help the Yankees earn yet another championship. But that season would be his last, as during the offseason he tested positive for cocaine. Strawberry apparently finally learned his lesson, as today he runs a ministry dedicated to helping drug addicts.

Freakishly gifted wide receiver Randy Moss spent most of his career with the Minnesota Vikings, and though his physical gifts were obvious, he had a hard time shaking a reputation for being a bit of a pothead. SB Nation reports he'd been in trouble over the weed before entering the NFL in 1998, and it didn't help when cops found a joint in his car after an incident in 2002, according to The Washington Post. Of course, this was after he'd pushed a traffic officer a half block down the street with his car (per The New York Times), which was a bit more serious. 

He was eventually only charged with a pair of misdemeanors for the traffic incident (per Minnesota Public Radio) and another for the weed (per ESPN). However, the incident didn't keep him from continuing to partake of the ganja throughout his long career, which the NFL just kind of grudgingly tolerated as long as he kept making mind-bending catches.

Ex-Raiders and current Browns tackle Desmond Bryant wasn't exactly a household name in 2013, and his arrest may have gone under the radar of the general public if not for one detail. Sure, it was a pretty funny story — Bryant randomly showed up at a neighbor's at the crack of dawn, shirtless and stinking drunk, and caused some kind of commotion. But it wasn't the details of the offense that the whole internet wanted to discuss — it was what the hell was going on in his mugshot.  

Speculation has been endless. Is he lying down? Being punched in the back of the neck? Turning into a walrus? The possibilities went on forever, and before the hapless Bryant knew it, Jimmy Kimmel was using him as a punchline (per Bleacher Report).

A mortified Bryant, who incidentally is a Harvard graduate with a major in psychology, quickly bolted from Oakland to sign a free agent contract with the Browns, which fortunately had been in the works anyway. At his introductory press conference, he said: "I think in time I'll be able to show you guys... that's really not indicative of me. It was an accident. I've moved beyond that and hopefully everybody else will be able to" (via the Akron Beacon Journal).

"Iron" Mike Tyson was one of the most controversial and prized fighters the boxing world has ever seen. While his punch knocked many opponents out flat on their backs, he garnered plenty of public attention due to this personal life. At the peak of his career, he was convicted for the rape of Desiree Washington. Tyson served just over three years in prison, as per The New York Times. He was released in March 1995.

It wouldn't be his last run-in with the law, however, as he found himself arrested in 2007 for driving under the influence of drugs and being in the possession of cocaine, as per Reuters. Reportedly, Tyson was arrested in Scottsdale after his car almost crashed into a sheriff's vehicle. According to the arresting officer, Tyson admitted to having used cocaine that day and told police he struggled with addiction. The former boxer pled guilty to the charges and received a sentence of 24 hours in jail and 360 hours of community service after the judge seemed satisfied that Tyson had sought out rehabilitation and treatment, as per BBC News.