Titans' Britt faces the Commish - Ingles

Just prior to training camp, Titans Coach Mike Munchak called receiver Kenny Britt into his office to rehash an offseason of ugliness.

Conventional wisdom said the first-year head coach would discipline Britt for a handful of run-ins with the law during the 4½-month NFL lockout, but instead he let his budding star off the hook.

Munchak and Britt hope NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will do the same. Britt is scheduled to meet with Goodell in New York today.

“We'll have a sit-down, talk over what happened, see where our minds are at, see where I am at and see what happens from there,” Britt said on Monday. “I'm being hopeful that nothing happens to me. I plan on being real. I was brought up to be a man of his word, a man who takes up for his actions and things like that. That's how my father raised me up and that's how I will go in there tomorrow. We’ll see what happens. It is all in God’s hands.”

Goodell could take matters into his own hands, of course.

Britt’s pattern of behavior clearly ran afoul of the league’s personal-conduct policy. He was part of at least three incidents involving police, and a Facebook post under his name cursed Goodell, although Britt later said his account had been hacked.

There’s plenty to discuss.

“If I am the commissioner I would want to talk to him,” Munchak said. “People want to jump to conclusions that there will be some result from it, just like I was going to do something. I don’t know if the commissioner knows what has really gone on with this guy. I would assume it is more of a get-to-know. … I think a lot of players that have had some issues come up during the offseason are going to have to meet with the commissioner at some point and I think this is his turn.”

The NFL Players Association will be watching.

Guard Jake Scott, player representative for the Titans, said the union would challenge any fine or suspension for actions that occurred during the lockout.

“There was a separation agreement issued from the teams to the players, which means what it means: It means, ‘We don't want anything to do with you.’ To me, nothing means nothing,” Scott said. “Roger is probably right to say — even if he doesn’t punish him for what happened during the offseason — ‘Hey, I’m watching you going forward.’ He’d be right if he did that because that’s what he does. He would be well within his right to say that and it would probably be a good thing for him to do.”

Britt is scheduled to appear in a New Jersey court on Sept. 20 after pleading not guilty to disorderly-conduct charges from a July incident at a car wash in Hoboken. The initial charge was tampering with evidence — police said he crushed a marijuana cigarette.

In June, Britt was charged with two counts of falsifying information on his Tennessee driver's license application. He has a Sept. 13 court date in Nashville.

Earlier, Britt was arrested after attempting to elude police trying make a traffic stop in New Jersey. He eventually pleaded guilty to careless driving.

The Titans are keeping their fingers crossed that Britt will avoid significant punishment. He is a huge part of their plans.

Last season he had 775 yards and nine touchdowns despite missing four games and big chunks of others with a hamstring injury. He rocketed into breakout-star discussions with a seven-catch, 225-yard, three-touchdown performance in just three quarters against the Eagles in November.

The hamstring injury has limited Britt this preseason, but the Titans expect him to be ready for the start of the regular season on Sept. 11.

If Goodell doesn’t sit him down, that is.

“The only person I ask for mercy is the man upstairs to tell you the truth,” Britt said. “We all go through some things in our life. We are only human. We are allowed to make mistakes as human beings. If we don’t learn from it then I could see some discipline, but I have learned from it and going forward and trying to do what I can do for the team. Hopefully nothing happens to me.” This article was written by Jim Wyatt and appeared in The Tennessean.