Denver Broncos wide receiver Kenny McKinley was found dead in his apartment Monday in an apparent suicide.
Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson said authorities were called to McKinley's apartment in Centennial, Colo., at 3:35 p.m. local time and found his body in the second-floor master bedroom. He said detectives believe McKinley, 23, was killed by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Robinson said authorities were called by a female friend of McKinley's who discovered the body after returning from an errand with his child. The sheriff declined to say if authorities found a suicide note.
"It's still part of our investigation and probably nothing we'll talk about right now," he said.
McKinley's death is the latest in a series for tragedies for the Broncos in recent years. Cornerback Darrent Williams was slain in a drive-by shooting on New Year's Day 2007, and three months later backup running back Damien Nash collapsed and died after a charity basketball game in St. Louis.
"Everyone with the Broncos is shocked and saddened by the loss of Kenny McKinley," team owner Pat Bowlen said in a statement. "He was part of the Broncos' family and will be greatly missed by our organization. My most heartfelt condolences go out to Kenny's family and friends."
The Broncos said coach Josh McDaniels would meet with the media today.
McKinley was a second-year pro who was on the team's injured reserve list with a knee injury.
He played in eight games as a rookie in 2009 with seven kick returns for 158 yards before going on injured reserve with a knee injury on Dec. 29. He recovered and participated in the team's offseason workouts but got hurt again during the first week of training camp and was placed on IR with a knee injury on Aug. 5.
McKinley was a fifth-round draft choice out of South Carolina in 2009. He is South Carolina's all-time leading receiver with 207 catches for 2,781 yards. He came back to the school earlier this month, watched the Gamecocks beat Georgia 17-6 and visited with his college coach, Steve Spurrier.
Bills: Ryan Fitzpatrick will take over as starting quarterback in place of former Stanford star Trent Edwards, starting with Sunday's game at New England. The switch came a day after a 34-7 loss at Green Bay in which Edwards went 11 of 18 for 102 yards with two interceptions and was sacked four times.
Eagles: Barring a setback, Kevin Kolb will be the starting quarterback at Jacksonville on Sunday, despite two impressive performances by Michael Vick. Kolb has been cleared to practice after missing the second half of a season-opening loss to Green Bay and the Eagles' win over Detroit because of a concussion. Vick had 284 yards passing and two touchdowns in a 35-32 win over the Lions in his first start in almost four years.
Steelers: Quarterback Byron Leftwich was re-signed after being released Saturday. Leftwich may start Sunday's game at Tampa Bay, after starter Dennis Dixon was injured in last Sunday's game with Tennessee. Leftwich was expected to start throughout quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's four-game suspension, only to sprain his left knee in the Steelers' final preseason game Sept. 2. He hasn't played since.
Panthers: Rookie Jimmy Clausen will start Sunday's game against Cincinnati in place of the struggling Matt Moore. The former Notre Dame quarterback takes over the NFL's 28th-rated offense.
Jets: An MRI revealed that cornerback Darrelle Revis has a strained left hamstring, but he would not rule himself out of Sunday's game at Miami.
Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson said authorities were called to McKinley's apartment in Centennial, Colo., at 3:35 p.m. local time and found his body in the second-floor master bedroom. He said detectives believe McKinley, 23, was killed by a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Robinson said authorities were called by a female friend of McKinley's who discovered the body after returning from an errand with his child. The sheriff declined to say if authorities found a suicide note.
"It's still part of our investigation and probably nothing we'll talk about right now," he said.
McKinley's death is the latest in a series for tragedies for the Broncos in recent years. Cornerback Darrent Williams was slain in a drive-by shooting on New Year's Day 2007, and three months later backup running back Damien Nash collapsed and died after a charity basketball game in St. Louis.
"Everyone with the Broncos is shocked and saddened by the loss of Kenny McKinley," team owner Pat Bowlen said in a statement. "He was part of the Broncos' family and will be greatly missed by our organization. My most heartfelt condolences go out to Kenny's family and friends."
The Broncos said coach Josh McDaniels would meet with the media today.
McKinley was a second-year pro who was on the team's injured reserve list with a knee injury.
He played in eight games as a rookie in 2009 with seven kick returns for 158 yards before going on injured reserve with a knee injury on Dec. 29. He recovered and participated in the team's offseason workouts but got hurt again during the first week of training camp and was placed on IR with a knee injury on Aug. 5.
McKinley was a fifth-round draft choice out of South Carolina in 2009. He is South Carolina's all-time leading receiver with 207 catches for 2,781 yards. He came back to the school earlier this month, watched the Gamecocks beat Georgia 17-6 and visited with his college coach, Steve Spurrier.
Bills: Ryan Fitzpatrick will take over as starting quarterback in place of former Stanford star Trent Edwards, starting with Sunday's game at New England. The switch came a day after a 34-7 loss at Green Bay in which Edwards went 11 of 18 for 102 yards with two interceptions and was sacked four times.
Eagles: Barring a setback, Kevin Kolb will be the starting quarterback at Jacksonville on Sunday, despite two impressive performances by Michael Vick. Kolb has been cleared to practice after missing the second half of a season-opening loss to Green Bay and the Eagles' win over Detroit because of a concussion. Vick had 284 yards passing and two touchdowns in a 35-32 win over the Lions in his first start in almost four years.
Steelers: Quarterback Byron Leftwich was re-signed after being released Saturday. Leftwich may start Sunday's game at Tampa Bay, after starter Dennis Dixon was injured in last Sunday's game with Tennessee. Leftwich was expected to start throughout quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's four-game suspension, only to sprain his left knee in the Steelers' final preseason game Sept. 2. He hasn't played since.
Panthers: Rookie Jimmy Clausen will start Sunday's game against Cincinnati in place of the struggling Matt Moore. The former Notre Dame quarterback takes over the NFL's 28th-rated offense.
Jets: An MRI revealed that cornerback Darrelle Revis has a strained left hamstring, but he would not rule himself out of Sunday's game at Miami.