Taylor's death hits Bears hard

The murder of Redskins safety Sean Taylor is the latest and maybe the most tragic example to all NFL players that they have to be careful out there.

"There are a lot of people out there who don't believe in hard work and that there's an easy way to get things that you want," linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo said.

"Being athletes, we're easy targets. You've seen it a couple of times in Chicago (robberies of NBA players Eddy Curry and Antoine Walker), you've seen it in Miami, where guys are robbed and stuck up for either their jewels or money or at their houses."

When Bears defensive end Adewale Ogunleye played for the Dolphins, he followed Taylor's stellar college career at Miami and got to know him since they're both represented by agent Drew Rosenhaus.

"The fact that he's a professional athlete, it's going to get blown (out of proportion)," Ogunleye said. "But as athletes we still have to watch our backs. We've got to make sure that we're taking precautions to protect ourselves and our families because with a lot of the money and fame (there's) a lot of jealousy.

"People look at that and they're envious, and it leads people to do crazy things."

Taylor was killed in his home, but players often face more dangerous situations when they're out in public, leading more and more of them to seek protection or avoid the limelight.

"You have to be conscious of your surroundings at all times, and when you're out, not be so flamboyant," Ayanbadejo said. "In this day and age, with the disparity between the rich and the poor, there's people out there who will do anything to get what you have."

Former teammate Tank Johnson's troubles last season hit close to home for a lot of Bears players who learned their lesson about frequenting establishments with borderline reputations.

"I don't like to go to places that look too crazy," Ogunleye said. "I'm 30 years old now. If it looks too shaky, I'm not in it. If I know that there's not a way in or out without having to go through a metal detector, I probably don't need to be there.

"(But) these guys are young. They're going to go out, but you've got to be smart about it."

As a potential victim, Ayanbadejo's attitude has changed over the years.

"If somebody's going to rob me, they can have whatever they want," he said. "If it's on me and you want it, you can have it because I'm a father. I have a daughter, and I plan on seeing my daughter having kids one of these days.

"When I was younger, I used to say, 'OK, I'm a tough guy. I'm not going to let anybody punk me. No one can take what's mine.' Now, all these material things, they don't matter at all. Being a parent, now I really understand what's important in life."

Rookie tight end Greg Olsen was a freshman at Miami during Taylor's final season with the Hurricanes.

"When I came in, him and (Kellen) Winslow were the main guys on that team," Olsen said. "You'd be hard-pressed to find a better guy than him.

"I actually saw it on TV, 'Football player shot.' I walked up, saw that it was Sean, and I texted Drew (Rosenhaus), and he was at the hospital with him, and he was kind of keeping all of us updated.

"The last message I got from him before I went to sleep (Tuesday) was that he was doing better and the whole thing about squeezing the doctor's hand and all that.

"And then I woke up in the morning and had a text from Devin (Hester) just saying that Sean passed away. I couldn't believe it. It's terrible."