NASHVILLE, TENN. • Nashville police say former NFL quarterback Steve McNair was shot multiple times and that the 20-year-old woman found dead with him in a downtown condominium was shot once in the head. A pistol was found near her body.
Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron identified the woman as Sahel Kazemi, whom he called a "friend" of McNair's.
Autopsies were planned for Sunday.
Aaron says McNair's wife, Mechelle, is "very distraught" and that police do not believe she is involved.
McNair was 36 and played 13 seasons before retiring in April 2008.
Aaron said officers went to the scene after receiving a call about injured persons inside the condo.
"When
police officers arrived in response to that call, they found two
individuals who had been shot to death inside the residence," he said.
The
condominium is one that McNair was known to frequent, but police
spokeswoman Kristin Mumford said she didn't know if he was the owner.
About
50 people crowded just beyond police tape outside the complex in the
upscale Rutledge Hill neighborhood, some wearing Titans hats. The
condominium is located within walking distance of an area filled with
restaurants and nightspots, a few blocks from the Cumberland River and
within view of the Titans' stadium.
In June, McNair opened a
restaurant near the Tennessee State University campus. It was closed
Saturday evening, but had become a small memorial, where flowers,
candles and notes had been placed outside the door.
On the restaurant's windows were messages: "We will miss you Steve" and "We love you Steve."
A note attached to a small blue teddy bear read, "We will never forget you, Steve. Once a Titan, always a Titan."
McNair,
a four-time Pro Bowler, led the Titans within a yard of forcing
overtime in the 2000 Super Bowl, which they lost 23-16 to the St. Louis
Rams. He also played for the Baltimore Ravens before retiring in April
2008.
His most noted drive, the last one in that Super Bowl, came
when he led the Titans 87 yards in the final minute and 48 seconds,
only to come up a yard short of the tying touchdown. Kevin Dyson caught
his 9-yard pass, but was tackled at the 1-yard line by the Rams' Mike
Jones.
McNair accounted for all of Tennessee's yards in that
drive, throwing for 48 yards and rushing for 14. The rest of the
yardage came on penalties against the Rams. Before that, he brought the
Titans back from a 16-0 deficit to tie the game.
"We don't know
the details, but it is a terrible tragedy and our hearts go out to the
families involved," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement.
"We
are saddened and shocked to hear the news of Steve McNair's passing
today," Titans owner Bud Adams said in a statement. "He was one of the
finest players to play for our organization and one of the most beloved
players by our fans. He played with unquestioned heart and leadership
and led us to places that we had never reached, including our only
Super Bowl."
"If you were going to draw a football player, the
physical part, the mental part, everything about being a professional,
he is your guy," former Ravens and Titans teammate Samari Rolle said.
"I can't even wrap my arms around it. It is a sad, sad day. The world
lost a great man today."
McNair became a nationally known college
football star playing for Alcorn State, a Division I-AA school in his
home state. His performance in the Southwestern Athletic Conference was
so dominant, he became a Heisman Trophy contender and national media
flocked to the school in Lorman, Miss., to get look at "Air McNair." He
still holds the Division I-AA (now known as Football Championship
Subdivision) records for career yards passing (14,496) and total
offense (16,823).
McNair began his NFL career in 1995 with the
Houston Oilers, who eventually became the Titans, and finished with
31,304 yards passing and 174 touchdowns. McNair played with pain for
several years, and the injuries ultimately forced him to retire.
"On
the field, there isn't player that was as tough as him, especially at
the quarterback position," the Ravens' Derrick Mason said. "What I have
seen him play through on the field, and what he dealt with during the
week to get ready for a game, I have never known a better teammate."
During
a five-game stretch at the end of the 2002 season, McNair was so
bruised he couldn't practice. But he started all five games and won
them, leading the Titans to an 11-5 finish and a berth in the AFC
championship game for the second time in four seasons.
McNair
played all 16 games in 2006, his first season in Baltimore, and guided
the Ravens to a 13-3 record. But he injured his groin during the season
opener last season and never regained the form that put him in those
Pro Bowls.
"I am deeply saddened to learn of today's tragic news
regarding the death of Steve McNair. He was a player who I admired a
great deal," said New England Patriots senior football adviser Floyd
Reese, who was GM of the Titans when McNair played for them. "He was a
tremendous leader and an absolute warrior. He felt like it was his
responsibility to lead by working hard every day, no matter what."
Titans coach Jeff Fisher was out of the country, taking part in the first NFL-USO coaches tour to Iraq.
Ozzie Newsome, Ravens executive vice president and general manager, said he immediately thought of McNair's four sons.
"This
is so, so sad. We immediately think of his family, his boys. They are
all in our thoughts and prayers," he said "What we admired most about
Steve when we played against him was his competitive spirit, and we
were lucky enough to have that with us for two years. He is one of the
best players in the NFL over the last 20 years."