Megan Turner
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Chad Wheeler of the Seattle Seahawks was arrested Saturday on domestic violence and assault charges after he allegedly choked his girlfriend unconscious because she refused to stand up and bow to him.
Wheeler allegedly grabbed the female victim, threw her by her neck on to the bed, and proceeded to strangle her, according to police reports cited by the NFL.
Wheeler allegedly removed one of his hands to press it against the victim’s mouth and nose — to prevent her from breathing — while continuing to strangling her, the article states.
The Seahawks waived the backup offensive tackle on Wednesday. He has since been released on bail.
Yahoo Sports reports that Wheeler had not been taking his prescribed medication for bipolar disorder.
Per the Yahoo article, Wheeler was surprised when the victim woke up. He said to her, “Wow, you’re alive?”
The female victim locked herself in the bathroom and called 911, and Yahoo reports that officers found Wheeler standing next to the victim. Wheeler was uncooperative when officers first tried to arrest him.
Wheeler is listed as 6-foot-7 and 310 pounds on the report. The victim is listed a is 5-foot-9 and 145 pounds. She went to the hospital to receive treatment for arm pain and other injuries, the article reads.
Wheeler appeared in King County District Court on Monday, and bail was set at $400,000. He was ordered not to have contact with the victim and to surrender all weapons, Yahoo reports.
King County Correctional Facility’s website shows his bail was posted, and he was released Tuesday morning.
The Seahawks said Wheeler is no longer with the team in a statement posted Wednesday afternoon — his player profile has also been removed from the team’s website.
“The Seahawks are saddened by the details emerging against Chad Wheeler and strongly condemn this act of domestic violence,” the Seahawks’ statement reads. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victim. Chad is a free agent and no longer with the team.”
The Seahawks’ statement “encourages” Wheeler to get the help he needs, and includes information for individuals experiencing mental health issues.
In a thread of tweets on Wednesday, Wheeler said the events that occurred were a “manic episode” and he is “deeply sorry for the pain and suffering” that he caused.
“It is time for me to walk away from football and get the help I need to never again pose a threat to another,” he tweeted Wednesday afternoon. “I cannot express my sorrow or remorse enough. I am truly ashamed.”
Wheeler’s actions did not sit well with Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Dez Bryant, who also used his social media platform to let Wheeler know they should not cross paths.
“Chad wheeler if I ever run across you we are going toe to toe because I wouldn’t mind making the news breaking something across your fucking head then ask you are you still alive?..”
Wheeler, who went undrafted out of USC in 2017, signed with the New York Giants and appeared in 11 games, starting in five, his rookie season.
Wheeler started 14 games at right tackle then was waived/injured prior to the start of the 2019 season. Wheeler was later waived from New York’s injured reserve list with an injury settlement, then signed to Seattle’s practice squad in October 2019.
Wheeler’s NFL career with the Seahawks has been a non-steady fluctuation from the practice squad to the roster, and back to the practice squad, until his number is called on to join the 53-man roster when needed.
The Seattle Times reports Wheeler made $176,471 this season and spent much of it on the practice squad before being signed to the 53-player roster Dec. 12.
I hope he gets the help he needs and a full portion of justice from the State of Washington.
That’s incredibly scary. I can’t believe they granted him bail.
But Dez Bryant is an absolute moron. With all the people Twitter has banned for ticky-tack reasons, I have no idea how Bryant’s tweet isn’t a violation of their rules. It’s an explicit threat of violence, and one that appears to be racially motivated no less. It’s literal hate speech.
Why is Dez Bryant commenting on this? The actions by Wheeler were reprehensible, but hopefully his tweets are genuine and he finds a way forward to be a much better person.
Dez Bryant just wants to stay relevant and make this about race. Typical race baiting bull shit.
That was fast action.
It’s Seattle, so he’s likely already back on the street. Also, Dez breaking out the race card out of the Left Field is a nice addition. I’m sure Twitter’s Civic Policy (big brother) Counsel is mulling a sanction. Not.
Dez trying to fight the overwhelmingly conservative media. I saw something else where Burleson on NFL Network basically had a “Look, white players do it too!” moment the other morning.
Ease off the juice would prolly help and Dez isn’t he the guy that used to slap his mom around he should probably just be quiet. national felon league rightly named
If your life is that upside down and you’re sorting out real problems within yourself in real-time, why the *uck would you go on Twitter to apologise or, whatever? Keep it private and face your demons without an audience. Seems weird to me.
I think it’s a crock that everyone is saying we’re going easy on Chad Wheeler and letting him off the hook because he is white. Shannon Sharpe says that we claim black dudes are “bad people” when they get arrested for DV, but we make “mental health” excuses for white guys. The level of ridiculousness that these guys say on TV never ceases to amaze me.
Exactly. It is not an excuse if Wheeler suffers from bi-polar disorder. There is medicine for that and if not taken these manic episodes can happen. The problem is every sports enterprise wants to be the first to hire a recent retiree to be on their shows but don’t realize how uneducated and simple minded some of these clowns are. That goes for every race and male or female. The networks hire simpletons and they make simpleton comments for social media clout.
Its great to see bad behaviour dealt with swiftly, it is rare in the sports world.