Braylon Edwards Caught Drunk Driving: What Not To Do at 5:15 a.m.

There is only one thing that Braylon Edwards should have been doing at 5:15 this morning: sleeping.

Instead, the New York Jets receiver was out drunk-driving in his Range Rover with a buddy along a New York state highway. 

There are so many things wrong with this situation and so many unanswered questions.

What was Edwards doing at that hour? Why was he drunk? Why was he driving if he was drunk? Who is his buddy, and what was he doing?

The Jets were barely one day removed from an important victory over the New England Patriots in which Edwards played well and grabbed a touchdown. Edwards got his postgame celebration started a little early after that play, receiving a penalty for taunting.

But obviously Edwards wasn't done celebrating yet.

Where he went Monday night and into Tuesday morning is irrelevant. No responsible professional athlete should ever be out that late, let alone drinking and driving (a concept that Pac-Man Jones never seemed to grasp).

Bending the rules a little bit during the offseason is one thing. But this is the second week of the season!

What is Edwards doing getting that drunk? Is he really so desperate to be on a good team that he would go out and celebrate the Jets' first win by getting hammered?

Whatever the reason, Edwards had no business being out on the road last night. He's endangering his life and the lives of everyone else on the road with him. It's irresponsible, stupid, and dangerous.

NFL athletes, and professional athletes in general, seem to have a tendency to enjoy the fruits of their labor a bit too much and party without any consideration for the consequences. 

They're rich, we get it. They deserve to take advantage of their celebrity status and have a good time every once in a while. But not at the expense of innocent civilians.

Seemingly every time there's a story about an athlete at a nightclub or bar, the story ends badly. Physical assault, sexual assault, drugs, drinking—all of these things are commonplace in a party scene and become more serious the later the night gets.

The lesson here, lest it be forgotten, is to not stay out that late.

Regular partygoers know this. Why doesn't Braylon Edwards?