Top 5 NFL stories of 2012

The year featured its usual array of the exciting (the Giants beat the Patriots in another classic Super Bowl), the fantastic (the play of rookie QBs Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson), the disagreeable (Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano and Giants counterpart Tom Coughlin arguing about strategy) and the tragic (Eagles coach Andy Reid's son overdosing on heroin and Cowboys linebacker Jerry Brown being killed in a car accident). While some of these moments were stunning, they all failed to make this year's top five NFL stories of 2012. – By Jason Cole

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No. 5: Jovan Belcher murder/suicide – One of the ugliest off-field incidents in the history of the game hit the Chiefs on Dec. 1. Belcher, an undrafted free agent linebacker from Maine in his fourth year in the league, first killed his girlfriend and mother of his three-month-old daughter, shooting her nine times. He then took his own life by putting a gun to his head in front of coaches Romeo Crennel and Gary Gibbs and GM Scott Pioli in front of... more
No. 5: Jovan Belcher murder/suicide – One of the ugliest off-field incidents in the history of the game hit the Chiefs on Dec. 1. Belcher, an undrafted free agent linebacker from Maine in his fourth year in the league, first killed his girlfriend and mother of his three-month-old daughter, shooting her nine times. He then took his own life by putting a gun to his head in front of coaches Romeo Crennel and Gary Gibbs and GM Scott Pioli in front of the Chiefs complex. Belcher's tragic loss of his senses led to all sorts of discussions about gun control, relationship issues and mental health. Afterward, several players turned in guns. less