On November 26, 2007, Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor was shot in his home by an intruder. The bullet severed Taylor’s femoral artery, and he died the following day. He was 24 years old.
While Taylor lay in critical condition, Michael Wilbon of the Washington Post had this to say in an online chat (via Deadspin’s Barry Petchesky).
McLean, Va.: Will your opinion of Taylor change if this does not turn out to be a random incident (e.g. home invasion)?
Michael Wilbon: No … people’s opinions are shaped by the way they’ve grown up, the way they see the world, what they know about the world the person in question grew up in, etc. Sean Taylor isn’t the only guy I know who fits his general profile. I’ve known guys like Taylor all my life, grew up with some. They still have shades of gray and shouldn’t be painted in black and white…I know how I feel about Taylor, and this latest news isn’t surprising in the least, not to me. Whether this incident is or isn’t random, Taylor grew up in a violent world, embraced it, claimed it, loved to run in it and refused to divorce himself from it. He ain’t the first and won’t be the last. We have no idea what happened, or if what we know now will be revised later. It’s sad, yes, but hardly surprising.
