Aaron Hernandez
A gifted NFL tight end whose life spiraled into a shocking murder conviction, exposing the dark pressures of professional sports.
1989–2017 (age 28)·American football player and murderer·Birthday: November 6·Millennials
Biography
Aaron Hernandez’s story is a tragic American parabola, soaring from athletic promise to a grim prison cell. Growing up in Bristol, Connecticut, he was a football prodigy, a standout at the University of Florida who helped win a national championship. Drafted by the New England Patriots in 2010, he quickly formed a devastating offensive partnership with Rob Gronkowski, appearing in a Super Bowl and signing a $40 million contract extension. But off the field, a different narrative was unfolding. In 2013, he was arrested and charged with the murder of Odin Lloyd, a semi-professional player dating his fiancée’s sister. The trial revealed a life entangled with violence and alleged gang affiliations. Convicted and sentenced to life without parole, Hernandez’s story reached a bizarre, bleak conclusion when he was found dead by suicide in his prison cell in 2017, just days after being acquitted in a separate double homicide trial. His brain was later found to have severe CTE, a degenerative disease linked to repeated head trauma.
Millennials
1981–1996
The first digital natives. Grew up with the internet, came of age during 9/11 and the 2008 crash. Highly educated, deeply indebted, slower to marry and buy houses. Redefined work, identity, and what it means to be an adult.
Aaron was born in 1989, placing them squarely in the Millennials. The events that shaped this generation — the internet revolution, 9/11, and the 2008 financial crisis — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Aaron Was Born
The biggest hits of 1989
#1 Movie
Batman
Best Picture
Driving Miss Daisy
#1 TV Show
Roseanne
Aaron's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1989Born
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1994Started school
Nelson Mandela elected president of South Africa
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $90,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"The Sign" — Ace of BaseBest Picture: Forrest Gump
2002Became a teenager
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2005Could drive
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2007Could vote
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
2010Turned 21
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2017Died at 28
#MeToo movement; solar eclipse crosses the US
Gas: $2.42/galHome: $195,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Shape of You" — Ed SheeranBest Picture: The Shape of Water
Key Achievements
- Selected by the New England Patriots in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft, becoming a key offensive weapon.
- Caught a touchdown pass from Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLVI against the New York Giants.
- Signed a five-year, $40 million contract extension with the Patriots in 2012, one of the richest for a tight end at the time.
- Named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team in 2010 after recording 45 receptions for 563 yards and six touchdowns.
- Played collegiate football for the University of Florida Gators, winning the BCS National Championship in 2009.
Did You Know?
He was a high school teammate of another future NFL player, quarterback Danny O'Brien.
Hernandez's father died unexpectedly from complications following hernia surgery when Aaron was 16, an event that deeply affected him.
He played in the 2009 U.S. Army All-American Bowl, a prestigious high school all-star game.
Following his death, a study by Boston University revealed he had Stage 3 CTE, the most severe case ever found in a person his age (27).
His murder conviction was legally vacated after his death due to a Massachusetts legal principle called "abatement ab initio," though the underlying facts of the case were not overturned.
“I'm not that type of guy, so I'm not worried.”
