Let me describe to you an incredibly talented individual. This man is a Heisman Trophy winner, the first pick in the 1969 NFL Draft, the first player in the NFL to rush for 2,000 or more yards in a season and a moderately successful actor.


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Seeing all this information, you would think that his passing would be a time of justified mourning. There’s just one problem: That man (probably) killed his wife.



On Sunday night, the annual BET Awards were held. Like most entertainment ceremonies, there was a section set aside for honoring the greats who had been lost in the past year, among them Bill Cobbs, Carl Weathers, Willie Mays, and, of course, O.J. Simpson.


Yeah, that O.J. Simpson.


While BET tried to sanitize his history as best they could by simply identifying him as a “former NFL player,” audience members couldn’t help but remember him for the, you know, crimes.



“The families of Brown and Goldman criticized BET for including Simpson. Ron’s father, Fred, told TMZ: ‘I think they shouldn’t include anyone of that caliber — a wife beater, murderer … can’t imagine why they would include someone like that,’” notes the Hollywood Reporter.


“Echoed Nicole’s sister, Tanya, to TMZ: ‘It’s inappropriate to give an abuser and murderer recognition.’ She added: ‘Whoever thought of doing that owes every domestic violence victim an apology … and that’s including our family. And, they should be fired,’” the piece continues.



Note to all TV award-show producers: If the average Joe thinks of a guy as a “murderer” rather than a “former NFL player,” maybe it’s smart to leave them out of the In Memoriam segement.