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Eight athletes on path to self destruction

Athletes work their butts off to reach the height of their respective professions. Years of painstaking training and sacrifices most of us could scarcely imagine finally gives way to them reaching the pinnacle their sports have to offer.

These are good stories. They represent the best the sports world has to offer.

Unfortunately, we have seen too many stories of top-flight athletes throwing everything away due to idiocy and chemical dependency off the field.

From Johnny Manziel and Aldon Smith in the NFL world to O.J. Mayo in the National Basketball Association, here are eight athletes on the path to self destruction.

1. Johnny Manziel (NFL)

His story is by now well known. It’s a cautionary tale of a high school football star in Texas that was handed everything with a silver spoon. It’s a story of addiction, self destruction and immaturity.

We already knew about Manziel’s partying ways when he was the toast of College Station with Texas A&M. That can easily be written off as immaturity and living the college life.

Unfortunately, all this has bled over to the NFL. From checking himself into rehab after his rookie season to finding himself charged in relation to a domestic violence case, Manziel’s world has been turned inside out. And in reality, he has only himself to blame for it.

Now a free agent after the Cleveland Browns released him, Manziel has indicated he’s on the path to sober living. Let’s just hope that’s actually the case here. After all, the quarterback’s father himself is worried that his son might not live to see his 24th birthday.

2. Jon Jones (MMA)

This former light heavyweight champion has found himself in the news for all the wrong reasons. Jones was stripped of his belt back in April of 2015 after he was involved in a hit-and-run.

Jones ended up pleading out to fleeing the scene of an accident, and was reinstated by the UFC back in October. He was then arrested for a parole violation back in March (more on that here).

Then, back in July, a urine sample from Jones tested positive for a banned substance under the world anti-doping policy. This came as he was scheduled to take on Daniel Cormier in a championship bout at UFC 200.

Later in July, the Nevada State Athletic Commission revealed that Jones tested positive for an anti-estrogen substance as well as an aromatase inhibitor.

Needless to say, Jones’ 23-1 mark in the ring hasn’t necessarily led him to performing at a high level as a human. And in reality, all these personal issues could damage what might have been one of the best mixed martial arts careers in history.

3. Josh Gordon (NFL)

Josh Gordon

It’s simply amazing how much marijuana can impact a player’s ability to actually take to the field in the NFL. While some will conclude that the league’s drug policy is archaic (it is), players know full well what the NFL tests for. Continually failing said tests puts you into a situation where idiocy is the term you’re most associated with.

For this Cleveland Browns wide receiver, that’s been the case throughout both his college and NFL careers.

Gordon left the Baylor football team after then head coach Art Briles suspended him indefinitely for failing a drug test back in 2011. This came after the star receiver was found asleep in a Taco Bell drive-thru, at which point his teammate was cited for possession of marijuana (via ESPN.com).

Entering the NFL as a supplemental pick back in 2012, Gordon jumped on to the scene big time, recording over 800 receiving yards as a rookie. He then followed that up by putting up a league-high 1,646 receiving yards in 2013.

If Gordon had just kept his nose clean off the field, he would have gone down as one of the best young receivers in the game. That didn’t happen.

Gordon was suspended for the first two games of that 2013 season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. This means that he had failed two drug tests within the previous year.

Unfortunately, it didn’t stop there. Gordon was suspended for the entire 2014 season for violating the substance abuse policy once again. Though, the league’s new stance on marijuana enabled that suspension to be shortened to 10 games. The Baylor product would then go on to put up over 400 yards in five games to conclude that season.

Anyone who has followed this story knows it doesn’t end there. Gordon would violate the policy once again during the winter of 2015, finding himself suspended indefinitely (more on that here).

After filing for reinstatement back in January, reports surfaces that Gordon failed yet another drug test. Needless to say, his motion to be reinstated was declined.

Now given one last chance after being reinstated back in July, Gordon must serve a four-game suspension to start the 2016 season. If he somehow fails to get a clue here, a once promising NFL career will be all but over.

The absurdity of this is that he’s throwing away millions in order to smoke a little weed. Those of us who function in the real world without a chemical dependency will never fully understand the poisoned mind. Let’s just hope Gordon gets it right this time.

4. O.J. Mayo (NBA)

A life-time ban from the NBA for doping. When this news broke earlier in the summer, most people around the basketball world found themselves in complete shock. Why would a basketball player have to resort to performance enhancing drugs?

A top-five pick of the Minnesota Timberwolves back in 2008, Mayo never lived up to expectations after being considered an all-world talent during his days with USC. In fact, he averaged a career low 7.8 points while shooting 37 percent from the field for the Milwaukee Bucks last season.

It’s one thing to not live up to expectations on the court. It’s a completely different thing to attempt to acquire an advantage over your opponent by taking illegal substances. That’s something most of us will never understand.

Mayo is able to apply for reinstatement into the NBA in two years. Considering this latest positive test was the second of his career, that might be his final chance to make good on what was seemingly a career without boundaries less than a decade ago.

5. Martavis Bryant (NFL)

Courtesy of USA Today Images

Much like his division rival in Josh Gordon, it’s readily apparent that Bryant has an addiction to marijuana.

Bryant was suspended for the first four games of the 2015 NFL season after committing multiple violations of the league’s substance abuse policy — all marijuana related.

A four-game ban will get you in the doghouse. That was somewhat mitigated last year after he tallied 765 receiving yards and six scores in 11 games. At that point, many in the Pittsburgh Steelers organization believed Bryant had righted the ship of the field.

In yet another sign of a young man simply not getting it, Bryant failed another drug test back in March, and was suspended for the entire 2016 season (more on that here).

This sounds all too familiar. It’s a pattern we have seen with Gordon over the years. And it’s something Bryant must fix in short order if he wants to salvage his career.

6. Jenrry Mejía (MLB)

Everything seemed to be going swimmingly for this Dominican hurler back in 2014. He tallied 28 saves after taking over as the New York Mets closer. He also posted well over a strikeout per inning, an indication that domination might be in his future.

Then, like most cases in this article, substance abuse and drugs took over. Mejía’s drug of choice so happens to be Anabolic steroids, a performance enhancing drug that’s long been banned by Major League Baseball.

He was first suspended 80 games for a positive test back in April of 2015. The reliever then tested positive for the same substance less than three months later, receiving a one-year suspension. Sadly, that didn’t set Mejía on the straight in narrow.

For the first time since a certain all-time hit king, Major League Baseball suspended a player for life. That came after Mejía tested positive for performance enhancing drugs back in February — his third positive test in less than a calendar year (via ESPN.com).

7. Aldon Smith (NFL)

This could be an article in and of itself. Multiple DUI arrests. Separate trips to rehab. Three different suspensions. Gun charges. Accusations of making a terrorist threat at an airport.

Once considered one of the best young defenders in the NFL, Smith is currently serving a year-long suspension in hopes of suiting up for the Oakland Raiders later in the season.

Unfortunately, the all-world pass rusher simply can’t keep himself out of trouble off the field. Smith allegedly posted a video of himself smoking marijuana on social media back in July.

After initially denying it was him, the linebacker then checked himself into rehab for a second time in his career (more on that here).

We have absolutely no idea how the NFL is going to react to this latest incident. What we do know is that Smith has been given opportunity after opportunity. It started with the San Francisco 49ers brass putting their reputation on the line. It’s now continued across the bay in Oakland.

When will these teams finally say enough is enough? For Smith’s sake, let’s hope they are not at that point. Though, it’s his off-field actions that have led to this.

8. Draymond Green (NBA)

It started with multiple on-court situations during the playoffs, situations that led to Green being suspended for Game 5 of the NBA Finals (more on that here).

In reality, it’s Green’s own actions that may have led to the Golden State Warriors meltdown against the Cleveland Cavaliers. That in and of itself is a bitter pill to swallow.

Unfortunately for the All-Star’s reputation around the NBA world, these issues didn’t end on the court. He was arrested in Michigan shortly after the 2015-16 season ended following an incident in which he assaulted a Michigan State football player.

While Green got off light following a plea deal, this has to be alarming to the brass in Oakland.

Adding to all this, Green accidentally posted a pretty risque photo of himself on social media. After initially claiming he was hacked, the forward took responsibility for the post (more on that here).

Green might not be in the same boat as others in this article, but he’s surely not on the right path. It’s a story to keep an eye on as the forward heads to Rio as a member of Team USA.

More than that, the Warriors need one of their top players to remain out of trouble off the court in order for them to repeat as conference champions this upcoming season.

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