According to the Indianapolis Star, Philadelphia police seized a 9 mm handgun from Marvin Harrison’s SUV during a traffic stop on Wednesday evening. Harrison had a valid license for the gun, but had denied that he was in possession of the weapon when the police officer asked him about it.

No charges were filed, but as the Star points out, this isn’t the first time Harrison and his guns have found trouble.

Harrison was a suspect in an April 2008 shooting in Philadelphia, but the local DA declined to press charges citing a lack of evidence. When she announced her finding in January 2009, then-DA Lynne Abraham refused to rule out prosecuting Harrison in the future.

Investigators said a gun owned by Harrison was used in the shooting.

A Philadelphia man, Dwight Dixon, later accused Harrison of shooting him. Dixon was shot again in July 2009 and died two months later. Current DA Seth Williams has called Harrison a person of interest in that case.

In the 2008 shooting (in which three people were injured), two of the victims said that Harrison had fired the shots, but he was never charged with anything due to lack of evidence. Dixon also said that Harrison had shot him, yet the receiver wasn’t charged with anything then either.

Now Dixon is dead after being shot again and Harrison is driving around lying about having a gun in his SUV. If he had a valid license for the gun on him, why did Harrison lie to the police and tell them that he wasn’t carrying the weapon?

I’m no Jessica Fletcher, but something doesn’t add up here.

In the February GQ story, “The Dirtiest Player,” Jason Fagone tells the tale of eyewitness Robert Nixon, who witnessed the Harrison shooting.

It was a scene* to make anybody stop and watch. Broad daylight in North Philadelphia. April 29, 2008—a Tuesday. The corner of 25th Street and Thompson, about seven blocks north of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the steps Rocky climbed. A block of brick row houses, a church with a rubbed-out sign, a Hispanic grocery, a vacant lot. In one sense, the presence of a future Hall of Famer at this seedy vortex of the city—Harrison, eight-time Pro Bowl wide receiver with the Indianapolis Colts, then at the tail end of a thirteen-season career and a $67 million contract—was incongruous. Especially given that Harrison, who is usually described as “quiet” and “humble,” was noisily stomping the fat man in the face and gut.

To Nixon, the fat man looked semi-conscious.

After several minutes, Harrison and McCray walked away. The fat man slowly picked himself up. Shouting epithets, he staggered to his car. Nixon watched as Marvin Harrison got into his own car, parked to the west of the fat man’s. The fat man put his car into reverse. Thompson Street is one-way going east. The fat man backed up the wrong way until he was smack in front of Chuckie’s Garage, a car wash Harrison owns. The fat man was now blocking Harrison, who was trying to drive away.

Nixon saw Harrison get out of his car and exchange words with the fat man. He couldn’t hear the words, but he could see the gestures of threat and counterthreat. The fat man stayed in his car. He called somebody on his cell. Harrison got back into his car and called somebody on his cell. After a minute or two, Harrison got out of his car for the second time.

Marvin Harrison is six feet tall and 185 pounds. He has a neatly trimmed mustache and the body-fat content of an Olympic swimmer. He became the dominant wide receiver of his era not by outleaping or outwrestling defenders but by exploiting an almost supernatural talent for getting open: for feints, fakes, jukes, dodges, bluffs, stutter steps, sudden bursts of sick speed. But at this moment, Nixon says, Marvin Harrison did not run. He stood on the sidewalk and calmly raised his wiry arms. In each hand, Nixon clearly saw, was a gun.

Nixon froze.

“YOU A BITCH-ASS NIGGA!” Nixon heard the fat man scream at Harrison. “YOU AIN’T GONNA SHOOT. YOU AIN’T GONNA SHOOT. DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO.”

Nixon was across the street and thirty yards away when Harrison started shooting. Pop pop pop pop pop pop—a great staccato gust of bullets. Steadily, Nixon says, Harrison unloaded both guns into the fat man’s car, stippling the red Toyota Tundra with bullet holes as the fat man ducked in his seat. Eventually, the fat man sat up and sped off, heading straight toward Nixon’s position as Harrison darted into the street and continued to shoot.

Read the rest of the story here. It’s an eye-opening read. Harrison was always the consummate professional on the field, but this story paints a very different picture.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

In the world of fantasy football, a decade is a long time. It’s rare for a player to achieve fantasy stardom for five straight years, much less ten. As part of our Decade Debate series, here is a list of the top players of the ’00s, by position, under a high performance scoring system. The criteria is simple — we’re looking for sustained excellence.

QB: Peyton Manning, Colts

Let’s see, from 2000 to 2008, Manning has averaged 4,195 passing yards, 31.2 touchdowns, and only 13.6 interceptions. He is the model of consistency, never missing a start and finishing in the top 6 each and every season. In 2009, he’s on pace for another 4,967 yards and 35 TD. At just 33 years of age, the durable Manning has a shot at being the top fantasy QB of the ’10s as well.

Honorable Mention: Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Brett Favre, Donovan McNabb, Daunte Culpepper

RB: LaDainian Tomlinson, Chargers

From 2001 to 2008, LT2 averaged 1,470 rushing yards and 15.8 rushing touchdowns per season and missed only one start during that span. He also racked up an average of 64 catches (for 475 yards and 1.9 receiving TDs) in those eight seasons. The guy was a juggernaut; owners that had him during his incredible run from ’02 to ’07 — where he averaged 2,070 total yards and 19.8 total TD — were almost impossible to beat. Amazingly enough, when Tomlinson came into the league as a rookie, someone in my keeper league actually passed on him and drafted Michael Bennett instead. The lucky owner who landed LT2 went on to win three titles over the next few years.

Honorable Mention: Priest Holmes, Shaun Alexander, Edgerrin James, Clinton Portis

WR: Marvin Harrison, Colts

Some might say that Terrrell Owens or Randy Moss should get this honor, but those guys are flakes. They might post a huge fantasy day, or they might spend the afternoon screaming at their quarterback or sulking on the sideline. Fantasy owners could count on Harrison — the guy was a flat-out pro. In the seven year span from 2000 to 2006, he was ranked in the top 5 six times and never fell out of the top 10. He averaged 102 catches for 1365 yards and 12.7 TD, and only missed two starts in those seven seasons. In 2007, Harrison suffered a knee injury and missed 11 games. It was the only season where he was a disappointment to those owners that drafted him in the early rounds.

Honorable Mention: Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Torry Holt, Chad Ochocinco, Larry Fitzgerald, Reggie Wayne

TE: Tony Gonzalez, Chiefs/Falcons

While Antonio Gates certainly deserves mention, Gonzo has sustained excellence for the entire decade. From 2000 to 2008, he averaged 83.1 catches for 1,011 yards and 6.8 TD, which are outstanding numbers for a tight end. During that nine-year span, he missed just one start and finished in the top 3 an astounding eight times. Even though he changed teams in the offseason, he is having another top 5 season. Gonzo is on pace for 89 catches for 969 yards and seven TD. Just another day at the job for this Hall of Famer.

Honorable Mention: Antonio Gates, Jason Witten, Shannon Sharpe, Todd Heap, Jeremy Shockey

Top photo from fOTOGLIF

1. Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints—Brees fell 15 yards short of Dan Marino’s single season passing yards record, finishing with 5069 yards, along with 34 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Is he going to match that? There’s no reason to believe he won’t.

2. Philip Rivers, San Diego Chargers—I had LT last year and one of the reasons his stats suffered was because this guy kept throwing the damn ball. Rivers threw for 4009 yards with 34 TDs and just 11 picks. This year, will they go back to more of a run-first offense? Probably not — not with LT a year older.

3. Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals—Ah, the Fountain of Youth is a beautiful thing. Warner drank from it often, and of course when you have guys named Boldin and Fitzgerald to throw to, it can make you look good and feel ten years younger. Still, who expected 4582 yards and 30 touchdowns with 14 picks and a trip to the Super Bowl? Not me. This year, Warner may not have Boldin, who just keeps whining about his contract, but don’t think the QB’s numbers will suffer all that much.

4. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers—Brett who? You certainly won’t hear anyone blaming the Packers’ 6-10 season on Rodgers. It was in fact their defense that failed them, because Rodgers passed for 4038 yards with 28 TDs and 13 interceptions. And just for kicks, Favre’s numbers with the Jets were 3472 yards, but 22 TDs and league leading 22 picks. Going into 2009, Rodgers’ stock has to be even higher.

5. Jay Cutler, Denver Broncos—On what planet does 4526 yards and 25 touchdown passes get you run out of town? In Denver, where new coach Josh McDaniel screwed up and tried to trade for Matt Cassel. Oops. Cutler is now in Chicago, so that means his fantasy stock automatically drops a few notches.

6. Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts—The Colts got off to a horrible start and in fact didn’t win the division for the first time in years. But Manning finished strong, with 4002 yards, 27 TDs and just 12 picks. Marvin Harrison is no longer catching his passes, but that doesn’t mean Manning doesn’t have weapons.

7. Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles—It was a roller coaster season in 2008, but the Eagles came within about a quarter of reaching the Super Bowl. Somehow McNabb held it together (what, they have ties in the NFL?) and wound up having a great season, passing for 3916 yards with 23 TD passes and 11 picks. He only had 147 rushing yards and 2 rushing scores, but that’s what Philly has Brian Westbrook for. McNabb is getting long in the tooth, but he’s smarter and as accurate as ever.

8. Tony Romo, Dallas Cowboys—Okay, so there may be trouble in paradise and there is no T.O. anymore, but Romo is still a very good fantasy QB. His 3448 yards and 26 TDs were a bit off his 2007 pace (4211, 36 TDs), but part of that is because he missed a few games with a thumb injury.

9. Matt Cassel, New England Patriots—With zero pro experience and almost zero college experience, who would have thought Matt Cassel could come in for Tom Brady and have the season he did? Okay, so he is no Brady, but Brady is in a class of his own anyway. Cassel’s 3490 yards with 21 TD passes and just 10 interceptions were good enough to land him the starting job in Kansas City. How that will affect his fantasy stats remains to be seen, but don’t expect too much of a drop-off on an improved Chiefs’ team.

10. Chad Pennington, Miami Dolphins—You know Chad is still gloating after being pushed out of New York by Brett Favre, and then leading his Dolphins to the division title. Pennington is always risky as a fantasy QB because of injuries and inconsistency, but 3653 yards and 19 TDs is not shabby, nor was his microscopic total of 7 picks. If he stays healthy, Chad should have another good season.

The other name you’ll have to consider in 2009 is Brady. He missed the final 15 ¾ of the season after getting knocked out of the opener against Kansas City, but early reports are that Brady is looking and feeling great and will be at full strength in 2009. Randy Moss is salivating, and so will fantasy owners, though they will do so skeptically.

Are you ready for some football? I know I am and feel great just talking about it!

(Next week: Wide Receivers)

Remember Marvin Harrison? Well, apparently the 37-year old receiver is healthy, has no plans to retire and wants to play in 2009.

“I played in 15 games last year and a playoff game, and I intend to play again this season,” Condon said Harrison told him in a conversation Thursday afternoon.

Harrison, who turns 37 in August, was released by the Colts after the 2008 season, in large part for salary-cap relief. Harrison, who didn’t agree to a restructured contract, was scheduled to count more than $13 million against the Colts’ 2009 cap.

Last season, Harrison had just 60 catches for 636 yards and five touchdowns — the lowest full single-season totals of his career. He missed 11 games in 2007 because of a knee injury, catching just 20 passes and scoring one touchdown.

There hasn’t been much interest in Harrison at this point, but Condon said he expects his client to sign with a team close to the time that training camps open later this summer.

The knock on Harrison is that he won’t play for a veteran’s minimum salary, but considering no teams have showed interest in him to this point, he might change his tune once the season draws near. One would think that a receiver-needy team would have interest in a receiver of Harrison’s stature, but nobody wants to overpay for a 37-year old with knee issues.

First things first, The Bears would be wise to wait for the Rams to release him. He’s due a $1.25 million roster bonus on March 17 and while St. Louis would love to trade him before then, no team in their right mind will want to give up compensation knowing full well that the Rams will want to part ways before he’s due the bonus.

Secondly – why not? There’s no doubt Holt has lost a step and at 33 years old, he’s certainly not the long-term answer. But the Bears have been trying to get by with Devin Hester, Marty Booker and Brandon Llyod and it just hasn’t worked. Some fans might scoff at the idea of adding another band-aid fix to the position, but Holt would prove to be a solid mentor for guys like Hester over the next one or two seasons and the Bears could still target a receiver in the second or third round of the draft in April.

If Chicago is committed to quarterback Kyle Orton, then they need to give him more weapons outside of running back Matt Forte. Plus, Holt still runs some of the best routes in the league and if there has been one thing Hester has dramatically struggled with in his transition to receiver, it’s been his route running

Considering what’s left on the market in terms of wideouts (D.J. Hackett, Bobby Engram, Amani Toomer), Holt is the best of the bunch. T.O. and Marvin Harrison are available as well, but unless the Bears want to deal with a potential headache or overpay for a 36-year old with declining skills, Holt seems like the best fit at this point.

The Rams have been trying to trade Holt for the past couple weeks but so far they haven’t found any takers. As the Post-Dispatch notes, Holt is due a $1.25 million roster bonus on March 17 and therefore it’s unlikely that he’ll be a Ram past that point.

If he remains patient for the next week and a half, Holt is likely to get his wish. But I don’t blame him for wanting to end the charade and have the team just release now so both parties can move on. It’s clear that Rams are moving in another direction at receiver and I think the team owes Holt a debt of gratitude for all he’s done over the years. If they’re going to wind up releasing him anyway (and they will – no team is going to trade for him knowing that he’ll be cut if they wait long enough), they should do him a favor and cut him now.

Holt will catch on with another team because he still wants to play. This isn’t a situation like Marvin Harrison, who has completely dropped off the face of the earth. Harrison’s main concern is to get paid and if no team is going to do that, then he’ll just retire. But Holt still has that flicker of fire burning in him and he’s likely to take a pay cut to sign with a contender in an effort to play in one last Super Bowl.

Wide receiver-needy teams are the Bears, Dolphins and maybe even the Cowboys now that they’ve released Terrell Owens. I could also see a team like the Bucs being interested in Holt after they were spurned by T.J. Houshmandzadeh.