Remember the Time Tatum Bell Stole Luggage?
Sometimes the weirdest stories in sports get lost in the shuffle. Take, for example, the time former Broncos running back Tatum Bell was caught stealing luggage from his own team—and it wasn’t even his.
Bell, who played for Denver from 2004 to 2006 and again in 2008, had a decent career with 2,591 yards and 15 touchdowns. But his time with the Detroit Lions in 2007 was far less impressive, only managing 182 yards and one touchdown. After the disappointing year, the Lions decided to move on and signed former Bengals RB Rudi Johnson to a one-year deal in 2008. That’s when the drama began.
According to NBC4 New York, Johnson returned to find his luggage missing. After checking the team’s surveillance footage, it was clear that the culprit was none other than Tatum Bell, who was about to be replaced by Rudi.
Bell had taken Johnson’s bags, and while they were eventually returned, they were mysteriously empty. Johnson was left without his belongings—and around $200 in cash—though he never got the authorities involved. Johnson didn’t have much to say to Bell when they later spoke about it either.
This wasn’t just a minor hiccup for Bell’s career. In 2010, Bell admitted that the incident played a major role in the end of his NFL journey. “Man, I took the bag just being dumb,” he said. “That’s the main reason I’m not still in the league, to be honest with you.”
Let this be a lesson—don’t take what isn’t yours, especially someone else’s underwear.
