Fansided

Top 10 toxic teammates of the NFL

By Dani Bostick

May 5, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Former Texas A&M and Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel appears before Judge Roberto Ca as at the Frank Crowley Courts Building. Manziel reported to court for the first time since a Dallas County grand jury indicted him last month on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge. Former girlfriend Colleen Crowley has accused him of kidnapping, hitting and threatening to kill her in January. Mandatory Credit: Smiley N. Pool/Pool Photo via USA TODAYSports
May 5, 2016; Dallas, TX, USA; Former Texas A&M and Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel appears before Judge Roberto Ca as at the Frank Crowley Courts Building. Manziel reported to court for the first time since a Dallas County grand jury indicted him last month on a misdemeanor domestic violence charge. Former girlfriend Colleen Crowley has accused him of kidnapping, hitting and threatening to kill her in January. Mandatory Credit: Smiley N. Pool/Pool Photo via USA TODAYSports /
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Jan 9, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals outside linebacker Vontaze Burfict (55) hits Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) during the fourth quarter in the AFC Wild Card playoff football game at Paul Brown Stadium. Burfict was called for a personal foul on the play. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 9, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals outside linebacker Vontaze Burfict (55) hits Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown (84) during the fourth quarter in the AFC Wild Card playoff football game at Paul Brown Stadium. Burfict was called for a personal foul on the play. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /

7. Vontaze Burfict

Cincinnati Bengals defender Vontaze Burfict realizes he has a reputation for playing rough.

“I play hard,” he told ESPN in February. “Sometimes it gets me in trouble. My style of play is aggressive, and (the game has) changed, and I have to change with it, and play right there.”

Right after he admitted he might need to change his ways, he suggested he is unfairly targeted by league officials. Referring to his 2015 high hit on Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown that rendered him unconscious, he said, “And that play right there, I think if I wasn’t number 55, I wouldn’t have got flagged.”

Burfict was not only responsible for the near-decapitation of Brown. There are even YouTube compilations of his dirtiest plays.

Burfict’s dirty plays not only injure other athletes, they can also cost his team. His hit on Brown incurred a 15-yard penalty that ultimately led to his team’s defeat to their division rivals.

It appears Burfict is trying to be a better teammate. ESPN recently reported that he is mentoring other teammates, and he has more positive rhetoric on his Twitter account, from which he has tweeted negative rhetoric in the past.

Next: 6. Greg Hardy

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