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Former Vikings running back Michael Bennett sentenced to five years in prison

By Collin Kottke

Oct 31, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; A detailed view of a Minnesota Vikings helmet before a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 31, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; A detailed view of a Minnesota Vikings helmet before a game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports /
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Former Minnesota Vikings running back Michael Bennett has been sentenced to five years in prison.

It’s no secret that the Minnesota Vikings have had players with their share of legal trouble in the past. Most of the time, it seems, that those players are currently on the team. Lucky enough for the Vikings, the latest mention of the purple and police involves ex-Viking running back Michael Bennett.

The 150th birthday celebrating Star Tribune is reporting that Bennett has been sentenced to five years in prison after a laundry list of charges. From the Star Tribune:

"In March, Bennett pleaded guilty to burglary, identity theft and attempted theft. He was arrested in 2015 after the parents of a former girlfriend found out that a loan had been taken out against their property. Bennett was on parole at the time after a wire fraud conviction in 2012."

There’s a lot to unpack there. Bennett pulled the impressive theft cycle with convictions of burglary, identity theft, attempted theft and wire fraud.

The Vikings thought they might’ve had a steal of a pick with Bennett. Minnesota drafted Bennett with the 27th overall pick in the 2001 NFL Draft.  Bennett ran for 682 yards and two rushing touchdowns in 13 games in his rookie season. Bennett broke out in his sophomore season with 1,296 yards and five rushing touchdowns in 16 games which all resulted in a Pro Bowl selection for him.

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Injuries and fumbles would start to derail Bennett’s career after the Pro Bowl season. Bennett would never get close to 1,000 yards again with his highest rushing yard total for a season after the Pro Bowl was in 2005 when he ran for only 473 yards.

He did stick around on the Vikings through the 2005 season. Bennett played in 64 games over that time for Minnesota with a grand total of 3,174 rushing yards in his purple career.

Bennett would bounce around the league until 2010 spending time with the New Orleans Saints, Kansas City Chiefs, San Diego Chargers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders. He would only rush for another 529 yards with those teams over 45 games.

Minnesota Golden Gopher fans might also remember Bennett as a Wisconsin-native that was a productive member of the backfield for the Wisconsin Badgers.

Next: Mike Zimmer will be away from the Vikings for a while...

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