The incredible downfall of Javon Walker

The last time, I think, that NFC North teams really feared Brett Favre and his passing attack was when Javon Walker was still a member of the squad. He had good hands, blazing speed and seemed to always be open. Ever since, the Packers have been mediocre, save for this past season, and even then, it wasn't the passing game that struck fear in the hearts of Vikings, Bears and Lions fans.
Then Javon Walker tried to renegotiate his contract. Hey, he thought, if the Packers can get away with just cutting if I get hurt, why can't I maximize my money now? The Packers didn't see it that way. No team did, and teams still don't. When Javon Walker ironically tore his ACL on his first catch of his last season with the Packers, he became a poster child for all that was wrong with the collective bargaining agreement.
The Packers released Walker, and he eventually latched on with the Broncos. He emerged again as a threat at wideout. He also became a mentor of sorts to rookie receiver Brandon Marshall. One fateful January evening, the two went out with defensive back Darrent Williams and Brandon's brother. After an altercation that allegedly stemmed from the spraying of liquor onto the crowd at a Denver club, shots were fired into Walker's limo as they left. A bullet struck Williams in the neck, killing him. Williams died in Javon Walker's arms.
Sunday evening, Walker was out in Las Vegas, and as he left, he was the victim of a vicious assault and robbery that left him with a fracture in his orbital bone. Reports allege that beforehand, he was at a local club spraying the crowd with Dom Perignon, which either pissed someone off or just demonstrated that he had money to burn. The problem here is that Walker personified what is wrong with players in the NFL, not only getting involved in incidents at bars, but doing the same stupid thing that led to the death of a close friend.
Javon Walker could have been the poster child for what was wrong with the collective bargaining agreement and maybe could tilt things in favor of the players for a change. Instead, he went out and made mistake after mistake, and, if anything, has only served to enforce the stereotype that NFL players are nothing but trouble.