A pair of star NFL receivers have apologized over the past 24 hours after tweeting offensive messages in the wake of George Zimmerman’s acquittal.
Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz was forced to backtrack Sunday night after initially saying Mr. Zimmerman — the Hispanic neighborhood watch volunteer cleared of all charges in connection with the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin — would soon face deadly retribution.
“Zimmerman doesn’t last a year before the hood catches up to him,” Mr. Cruz tweeted after the verdict came down late Saturday night.
He quickly apologized.
“My tweet last night was my initial interpretation of the reaction I was reading on Twitter,” Mr. Cruz said, The New York Post reported. “I immediately realized my tweet was a mistake, and I apologize. That’s why I deleted it.”
Mr. Cruz isn’t the only pro-bowl receiver to find himself in hot water for tweeting an emotional, controversial reaction to the Zimmerman verdict.
PHOTOS: Photos from the George Zimmerman verdict
Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White also came under fire after saying on Saturday night that “all them jurors should go home tonight and kill themselves for letting a grown man get away with killing a kid.”
Like Mr. Cruz, Mr. White apologized just hours later.
“I understand my tweet last nite was extreme. I never meant for the people to do that. I was shocked and upset about the verdict. I am sorry,” he said.
