Sean Taylor: Too Soon

This is always a touchy subject.  And it always will be. 

I will not sit here and pretend like I knew Sean Taylor.  Not in the least bit.  There are a lot of reporters out there who are doing just that, though.

You can search for all of the articles and there are a handful of sports columnists and writers expressing their opinions about a young man who lost his life.

A 24-year old.

Some of these writers have even gone as far as dissecting what this does to the Redskins as an organization.  And by that, I mean what it does to them in their secondary.

A lot of reporters are choosing to open up the idea that Taylor was somehow involved with this shooting.  That he was involved in something deeper than a burglary attempt.

That Taylor is guilty until proven innocent.

All of those reporters and writers are missing the point in a story like this.  While they have a job to do, there is no reason for those thoughts to be at the forefront of someone's mind.

Someone lost their life.  And for the NFL, this is the fourth player in a short time to have lost their life.  All of which were 24 years young.

As stated above, I did not know Taylor.  But, his teammates did.  And I trust them more than I trust any reporter.

“Everyone in this building has noticed the change that Sean has endured over the past couple of years and seen the man that he has become ever since his little girl was born. It’s hard to expect a man to grow up over night, but ever since he had his child, it’s been a new Sean. Everyone around here knew it. He was always smiled, always happy, always talking about his little girl," said Clinton Portis.

His coach, Joe Gibbs, certainly knew Taylor.

"To see the way Sean had grown since he came here and the way he had impressed all of us, I knew how much his baby meant to him. To have that baby and carrying that baby, I could see in him a maturing process that you go through when you have your first child. All those things go through my mind, and yes, it puts it on a personal basis. I have never gone through anything like this so it is hard for me to put it into words and I’m probably not doing a very good job at it," said Gibbs.

They were around Taylor.  I was not.  I'll take their word above anyone else's.

News reports will continue to come out about the shooting.  About Taylor's life and the struggles that the Redskins will go through.

TV shows will continue to air segments discussing the impact of this tragedy.

The fact of the matter is this:  someone lost their son, someone lost their father, someone lost their boyfriend, someone lost their friend, and someone lost their teammate.

And at a time like this, that is all that should matter.