Ryan Leaf Sentenced To 5 Years For Probation Violation
According to The Dallas Morning News, on Tuesday all-time NFL bust Ryan Leaf was slapped with a five-year prison sentence in a Lubbock courtroom. A pretty hefty stretch of time for a probation violation, but Leaf has a lengthy criminal record.
The former Washington State quarterback was the Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year in 1997, the same year he finished third overall in Heisman voting. In 1998 he was selected No. 2 overall by the San Diego Chargers, second only behind Tennessee’s Peyton Manning, who was pick of the Indianapolis Colts.
Wilting in the shadow of Manning’s success and a victim of his own laziness, Leaf immediately wilted in the NFL, seeing action in just 25 games over three seasons before fading into not so peaceful oblivion.
Leaf actually caught a break in the Lone Star State though—his first in awhile—where a judge ruled he didn’t have to serve any additional time behind bars because of time served in Montana for breaking into a home to steal prescription drugs.
He plead guilty to various felonies stemming from the burglary in 2012.
Leaf, who is currently behind bars in Texas, has been granted parole but has not yet been released.