Projo Sports Blog

In the wake of news that Plaxico Burress gave a false name -- Harris Smith -- when he sought treatment for his self-inflicted gunshot wound at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Hospital, the NFL has banned fans from customizing "Harris Smith" Giants jerseys with Plax's number, according to the Central Maine Sports Blog. The NFL also bans fans from ordering jerseys that are otherwise in bad taste, including ones bearing the names of players who are linked to notorious crimes (like Rae Carruth, the former Panthers player who was was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle and using an instrument to destroy an unborn child in the killing of the woman who was pregnant with Carruth's child). In some cases, even if it appears that the blocking program used by the NFL didn't work, an order that is considered out of bounds may not actually be processed.

Here's what NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told the blog this morning:

"There are a number of jerseys that fans may not order online, including the ones you cite below (Michael Vick, Harris Smith, Ron Mexico, Lawrence Phillips). Those names are blocked immediately by a computer program which (unfortunately) is not all inclusive and may miss names from time to time. So a fan could type in names on the screen which would make it appear that he/she could purchase it. However, if a fan followed through with an order and attempted to purchase the jersey of a player like you named, we would catch it manually and would not make the jersey or ship the order. The fan would receive a notice that the order would not be fulfilled. Bottom line, you would not be shipped a jersey with the names you cited (Rae Carruth, Art Schlichter, OJ Simpson)."

 Tags  Harris Smith New York Giants NFL Plaxico Burress Rae Carruth

Leave a comment

Name:

Email:

URL:  

Remember personal info?

Captcha:

Type the characters you see in the picture above.