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Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry - Source: Getty -
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Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry died on Friday from
injuries suffered in a fall from a pickup truck, police said.
Henry died at 6:36 a.m. EST at Carolinas Medical Center in
Charlotte, where he had been taken by paramedics after the fall on
Thursday, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said.
Police said the 26-year-old Henry was involved in a "domestic
situation" with his fiancee and got into the bed of a pickup truck
as she drove the vehicle away from a home.
Henry "came out" of the back of the vehicle, though police would
not say whether he fell out or was forced out. No charges have been
filed and police are still investigating.
Drafted by the Bengals in the third round of the 2005 draft, Henry
is no stranger to problems off the field.
He was suspended by the NFL three times following four arrests.
Henry was released by the Bengals in 2007 and then re-signed to a
two-year contract before the 2008 season.
Bengals President Mike Brown said Henry had turned his life
around.
"It was challenging at times with him," Brown told a news
conference in Cincinnati. "But he was someone who we liked and
thought could regroup, catch himself, and re-start his life.
"And, to his credit, I think he did that. It's a terrible tragedy
that just at the time when he was running to daylight, his life was
snuffed out."
Henry had been on injured reserve with the Bengals since Nov. 9 due
to a dislocated forearm suffered during a 17-7 victory over the
Baltimore Ravens a day earlier.
Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said the team watched Henry grow
"as a person and a father" this year.
"They watched a guy mature as a young man and work through
adversity and come out of it and be a beacon of hope for other
people," said a somber Lewis.
"It's a very difficult thing, a young life that won't ever get to
reach its full potential."
Henry had 12 catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns this season.
Over his five-year career, Henry had 119 catches for 1,826 yards
and 21 TDs.
"We knew him in a different way than his public persona," said
Brown. "He was soft-spoken, pleasant, comfortable to be around. And
then this tragedy cut him down. It's painful to us. We feel it in
our hearts."
