Former NFL cornerback Aqib Talib will step aside from his role as an analyst for Amazon’s Thursday Night Football after his brother turned himself in over a fatal shooting in Texas.
Talib had won plaudits as a broadcaster since announcing his retirement in 2020. However last week his brother, Yaqub Talib, surrendered to police after being named as a suspect in the killing of a coach at a youth football game in Texas.
Aqib Talib’s lawyer issued a statement to TMZ confirming that the former NFL player was present during the shooting and “is very distraught and devastated over this terrible loss of life.”
“He would like to convey his condolences to the family of the victim and to everyone who witnessed this unfortunate tragedy,” the statement said.
On Sunday, Talib told the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport that he will “step aside from his broadcasting duties at Amazon to spend time with his family.”
Just spoke to Aqib Talib. In light of the recent tragedy, he is going to step aside from his broadcasting duties at Amazon to spend time with his family.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 22, 2022
The Talib brothers coached North Dallas United Bobcats, a youth football team in Texas. The victim of the shooting was Mike Hickmon, a coach of another local team, the DEA Dragons. Dragons president Mike Freeman said the shooting had been witnessed by some of the teams’ young players.
“I don’t know how to explain it to the kids. That’s the part that I’m stuck on right now. How do I explain it to them. Why?” Freeman said. “This is something that these kids will remember for the rest of their life.”
Talib was a five-time Pro Bowler during his career, and won Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos. He started his broadcasting career with Fox Sports after his retirement from playing and had recently been named as part of Amazon’s team for its Thursday Night Football show.
• This article was amended on 23 August 2022. Aqib Talib won Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos, not the New England Patriots as an earlier version said.
