Chris Henry's Troubled Life Cut Short

Chris Henry's life since entering the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals seemed destined to be defined by controversy and personal and professional turmoil. That destiny appeared to be changing this season, however, when the 26-year-old wide receiver -- in the second year of his second stint with the team -- began to show signs that he had left his troubled life behind and was maturing on and off the football field.

That maturation process will never be completed. Henry died at 6:36 a.m. Thursday in a Charlotte, N.C., hospital, from injuries suffered a day earlier when he fell from a moving pickup truck driven by his fiancee after what police called a "domestic situation.''

Henry was on life support from the time he was admitted Wednesday to Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte; a report by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said that they had been alerted to an emergency call just before noon that day that Henry was lying in the road with apparent "life threatening injuries'' following an unspecified dispute with his fiancee, Loleini Tonga.

Henry had been on the Bengals' injured reserve list after suffering a broken arm in a game against the Baltimore Ravens Nov. 8. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound wide receiver -- often described as being as physically gifted as any receiver in the NFL, including Randy Moss -- had been a productive part of a team that is one win away from clinching its first division title since 2005, with 12 catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns.

During his first three seasons as a Bengal, Henry was a key cog in an explosive offense, one that spearheaded that 2005 AFC North championship in his rookie season, as he teamed with quarterback Carson Palmer and the wide receiver now known as Chad Ochocinco. He caught 31 passes that season for six touchdowns; his best statistical season came the following year, when he caught 36 passes for 605 yards and nine touchdowns.

But Henry also became symbolic of a team barely in control off the field, as he was one of nine different Bengals players arrested in a nine-month span between 2006 and '07. His off-field transgressions, which included two days in jail in 2007 for drinking in a hotel room with underage girls, got him suspended by the NFL for the first eight games of that season. After another arrest the following offseason -- his fifth in 28 months; the others involved guns, drunk driving, assault and drug possession -- the Bengals felt compelled to release him in April 2008.

"He's been doing everything right. My grandmama always says, 'You never question the man upstairs' ... but I don't see how Chris was supposed to go already"
-- Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco However, every description of Henry by his coaches, teammates and team officials this season has lauded him for being a different person than the one the Bengals let go. Bengals president Mike Brown was roundly criticized when he re-signed Henry during training camp in 2008, but he was among the many who on Thursday spoke fondly of Henry and his transformation since his return.

"It's a tragedy that, just at the time when he was running to daylight, so to speak, that his life is snuffed out,'' Brown said at a news conference at the Bengals' headquarters.

Head coach Marvin Lewis -- who had a contentious history with Henry after drafting him out of West Virginia in 2005 -- also pointed out the changes in Henry's personality and outlook since being brought back, recalling a conversation he had with him and his fiancee before he was re-signed.

"It was a different man that was sitting across from me, a different person,'' Lewis said. "From that point on, I'd seen a pretty much continual growth from Chris, a degree of responsibility ... quite an expansion from him in football, on and off the field.''

Lewis also recalled a time earlier this season when he asked the organization about getting tickets for a big local high school football game, enough to bring his fiancee and their three children -- Seina, 3; Chris Jr., 2, and DeMarcus, 10 months -- with him. "It seems like it's a minor thing, but it talked about the level of growth that Chris had had,'' Lewis said.

It was the same player that Lewis fit into a team that had been rebuilt from virtual ashes in the 1990s into a contender, but whom Lewis had also benched twice and suspended once for disciplinary reasons. In his reincarnation with the team, though, Henry was a seamless fit on a team rebounding from the turmoil of the recent past -- Palmer was fully healthy from past knee and elbow problems, Ochocinco had stopped feuding with management, running back Cedric Benson had revived his career after flopping in Chicago, and the Bengals were disciplined on and off the field and reaping the benefits by driving toward a playoff berth.

It is also a team that had dealt with tragedy in its inner core already this season. The Bengals managed to regroup immediately after its defensive coordinator, Mike Zimmer, found his wife dead in their home in October, defeating the Ravens in Baltimore three days later and awarding Zimmer the game ball afterward.

Ochocinco fought back tears as he spoke to reporters in the Bengals locker room Thursday. "We talked after every game, just to say, 'Quiet down and handle your business,'' he said. "I don't know what else to say. He was doing everything right, he's been doing everything right. My grandmama always says, 'You never question the man upstairs on decisions he makes, because he doesn't make mistakes.' But I don't see how Chris was supposed to go already, especially when he was on the right path.''

In a story two months ago in the Cincinnati Enquirer, Henry traced his own turnaround back to the assault arrest that prompted the Bengals to cut him (the charges were eventually dropped). "I knew what I had to do and I was ready to do it,'' he told the paper. "That situation came about and I had to get my way out of it because I wasn't at fault. I had to keep working and get through it.''

Henry and several people close to him spoke proudly in the article of the alterations he had made in his life since returning to the Bengals. Among them was distancing former friends and associates from him whom he often had followed into troubled situations. (In his press conference, Lewis also pointed to the pressures Henry felt in aiding and supporting relatives and friends from his hometown of Belle Chasse, La., which was devastated by Hurricane Katrina not long after he reported to his first training camp.)

Another was his impending marriage to Tonga, reportedly planned for next March. Henry credited her for standing by him during his lowest moments, including the Bengals releasing him.

"Usually you see a lot of people fade away. The phone doesn't ring anymore and people don't want to be around you when you're going through things,'' Henry told the Enquirer. "Having someone support you no matter what, it's a beautiful thing.''

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg police's homicide and highway-interdiction traffic safety units began investigating the incident Wednesday afternoon. In a statement Thursday morning, the department called the investigation "active.''

Henry is at least the third active NFL player to die violently in the last three seasons. Washington safety Sean Taylor died in November 2007 from injuries suffered when he was shot in a home burglary; Denver cornerback Darrent Williams was shot to death on New Year's Day 2008 while leaving a party. In addition, former co-Most Valuable Player Steve McNair was shot and killed last July, a little over a year after the quarterback's retirement.

In five seasons and 55 regular-season games with Cincinnati, Henry -- born May 17, 1983 -- had 199 receptions for 1,826 yards and 21 touchdowns. In three seasons at West Virginia, he caught 22 touchdown passes, currently second on the school's all-time list, and his 12 scores in his junior year tied the school single-season record.

"I enjoyed our time together at West Virginia, and we shared a lot of great moments,'' said Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez, who coached Henry at West Virginia, in a statement. "I have many fond memories of our three years together and will remember those forever. Chris will be missed by many, and he will always have a place in my heart.''

Said West Virginia's current coach, Bill Stewart -- whose eight years as an offensive assistant spanned Henry's time there -- in a statement: "We say 'Once a Mountaineer, always a Mountaineer,' and Chris was a big part of our success during his time here. For me, he was a real joy to be around on a daily basis. He always came to work and loved to play football. Our hearts and prayers go out to his mother and family. He will be greatly missed.''