WARNING: SPOILERS ahead for American Sports Story episode 6.
American Sports Story episode 6 “Herald Street” changes several key aspects of Aaron Hernandez’s true story. Josh Rivera leads the American Sports Story cast as Aaron Hernandez, the former collegiate and NFL superstar tight end who was convicted of murdering semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd in 2015. The first two episodes of American Sports Story capture a basic understanding of Aaron Hernandez’s complicated upbringing and accelerated path to becoming a Florida Gator before joining the NFL’s New England Patriots in 2010. American Sports Story portrays several NFL players, including Hernandez, Rob Gronkowski, Tom Brady, and Tim Tebow.
American Sports Story episode 3 chronicles Hernandez’s celebrity status at the University of Florida before he ultimately declared for the 2010 NFL Draft. American Sports Story episode 4 chronicles more of the details of Hernandez’s transition from being the 2010 John Mackey Award winner to having his draft stock plummet ahead of the NFL Draft due to off-the-field concerns. American Sports Story episode 5 chronicles Hernandez’s early days as a rookie on the New England Patriots and explores the influences of his new head coach Bill Belichick while episode 6 depicts a violent shooting Hernandez was allegedly involved in with his friend Sherrod.
American Sports Story
is now streaming on Hulu.
Aaron Hernandez’s Alleged Shooting In Boston Went Down Differently
De Abreu and Furtado were also alone in their car when they were killed
In American Sports Story, Sherrod represents the real-life Alexander Bradley, who accused his former best friend Hernandez of killing Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado in a drive-by shooting in Boston’s Theater District. According to Bradley’s testimony, Hernandez became frustrated at de Abreu for spilling his drink on him so he and Bradley moved to another bar, where de Abreu and Furtado also showed up. Bradley claimed that Hernandez was paranoid and believed they were following him. Hernandez went to his car, a Toyota 4Runner, to retrieve his gun. He had Bradley drive around circling the bar until Hernandez spotted the two men and had Bradley drive up to them.
Related
Every Tight End Drafted Before Aaron Hernandez In 2010
As portrayed in American Sports Story episode 4, Aaron Hernandez wasn’t selected in the 2010 NFL Draft until the 4th round as the 113th overall pick.
According to Bradley, Hernandez fired five shots into the vehicle, hitting one man in the chest and another in the head. This slightly differs from American Sports Story episode 6, titled “Herald Street” since that was where the shooting took place. In the series, Hernandez and Sherrod are about to head home when Hernandez notices the two men getting into their car. Instead of waiting for de Abreu and Furtado to come out of the bar, the fictional account sees Hernandez driving following them after spontaneously seeing them. Bradley also testified that he was driving the 4Runner, not Hernandez. De Abreu and Furtado were also alone in their car when they were killed.
Aaron Hernandez Signed His $40 Million Contract Extension After Super Bowl XLVI
The series completely omits Hernandez’s performance in 2012’s Super Bowl
Hernandez performed well in the Patriots Super Bowl loss to the New York Giants in February 2012, which was completely omitted from American Sports Story. Hernandez signed a big 5-year, $40 million extension on his rookie deal after his stellar performance in Super Bowl XLVI in August 2012. Had this important detail been included in the series, it would have made Aaron’s insecurity about his finances and impending contract extension less viable, especially considering that he outperformed Rob Gronkoskwi and all Patriots wide receivers in Super Bowl XLVI.
Hernandez led the team in receiving yards (67) and scored one of the Patriots’ two TDs in their 21-27 Super Bowl loss. The series often makes it seem like Hernandez was strapped for cash during his first two years in the NFL but even his rookie deal gave him an annual salary of nearly $600,000, so the numbers don’t really add up in American Sports Story.
Aaron Hernandez Was Not Injured In Week 13 Away Game Against The Miami Dolphins
Hernandez had a season-high total of 97 receiving yards in the Pats’ road win
While it is accurate that Hernandez injured his ankle in the Patriots’ Week 2 game against the Arizona Cardinals with a high ankle sprain, Hernandez appeared to be back at full health in the Week 13 away game against the Miami Dolphins. The series makes it seem like he was struggling through his ankle injury during this game, wincing when putting pressure on his right ankle and even getting his shoulder injured after a rough tackle during the game. In truth, the game footage shows that Hernandez appeared to be completely fine during that game and his shoulder did not pop out of place. Hernandez had a season-high total of 97 receiving yards in the Pats’ road win on December 2, 2012.
Aaron Hernandez Was Said To Be Even Weirder In The Patriots’ Locker Room
Former teammates noted his volatile mood swings and inappropriate conduct
While there’s no report of Hernandez flashing his genitalia at Tom Brady in the New England Patriots locker room, more than one of Hernandez’s teammates has commented on his bizarre behavior. Brandon Lloyd told Wes Welker what to expect having a locker between Gronkowski and Hernandez, saying “I just want to warn you that he’s going to talk about being bathed by his mother. He’s going to have his genitalia out in front of you while you’re sitting out on your stool. He’s going to have his towel and try to dry off in front of you while you’re sitting at your locker. He’s going to talk about gay sex” (via Mens Journal).
Hernandez never laid his hands on an innocent fan
One thing Hernandez was not guilty of in American Sports Story was pushing New England Patriots fans who tried to take a picture with him at a Massachusetts shopping mall. This scene was clearly added by the creators of American Sports Story to demonstrate Hernandez’s increasingly unpredictable behavior and his short temper, portraying just how rapidly Hernandez’s anger could take over his personality and character. An incident like that involving a fan certainly would have been a headlining story if it had actually happened and likely would have come back around to owner Robert Kraft or head coach Bill Belichick in some way, resulting in disciplinary actions for Hernandez.
Aaron Hernandez Did Not Go To Cabo With The Fictional Chris Taylor
Chris is a completely fictional character in the series
Once again, American Sports Story pushes the narrative of the fictional love interest, Chris Taylor, forward into another episode, this time creating a fantastical scenario in which he and Hernandez escape to a resort in Cabo. There’s no record of Hernandez ever going to Cabo in 2012, although that’s certainly a possibility, but he did not go on a romantic getaway with a man named Chris.
At this point, anything in American Sports Story that involves Chris Taylor is either based on rumors, speculation, or pure fiction, since there’s no indication that Hernandez ever had an ongoing affair with a man, more importantly, an athletic professional, while he was in the NFL. The only identified gay lovers that Hernandez allegedly had were his high school teammate Dennis SanSoucie and a fellow convict by the name of Kyle Kennedy.
American Sports Story is a TV show from Stu Zicherman and executive produced by Ryan Murphy. The series stars Josh Andrés Rivera as Aaron Hernandez and Patrick Schwarzenegger as Tim Tebow. The sports anthology series serves as the fourth installment in Murphy’s “American Story” franchise.
- Cast
- Josh Andrés Rivera , Patrick Schwarzenegger
- Seasons
- 1
- Directors
- Paris Barclay , Carl Franklin