Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason, a close friend and former two-city teammate of late Titans and Ravens quarterback Steve McNair, will speak at McNair's public memorial service Thursday night.
"Derrick said he would be proud to do it," Ravens senior vice president of public relations Kevin Byrne said today.
The memorial service has been scheduled for Thursday at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Whites Creek, Tenn.
Byrne added that Ravens General Manager Ozzie Newsome is going to attend McNair's funeral in Mississippi this Saturday.
McNair was shot and killed Saturday in downtown Nashville. The incident has been ruled a homicide by law enforcement officials.
During Tennessee Titans coach Jeff Fisher's emotionally-charged press conference this afternoon, Fisher thanked several members of the Ravens for sending their condolences.
That included cornerback Samari Rolle, who played with McNair in Tennessee, as well as Mason and coach John Harbaugh.
"I feel blessed that I knew him," former Ravens tight end Daniel Wilcox told us in a telephone interview. "He gave us so much hope. Man, I'm going to miss him. I can still hear his voice. I can still see the smile on his face. He was a quiet leader, a special, humble guy.
"Bad things really do happen to good people sometimes. It shows you how short and precious life is. Steve lived his life like every day was going to be his last. I'm going to miss him big-time, and my heart goes out to his family."
Sorry for his family but when is a player going to come out and say that perhaps he should have been at home....with his wife. This incident should open a debate as to the disengaged lifestyle that many (not all) athletes lead. Yeah, McNair was a heck of a QB and seemed to be a nice guy, but when a "nice" person puts his/herself into these types of situations, what can you expect? I hope that during his last day, McNair did realize that he was making a mistake.
Are you suggesting he got what he deserved because, by all appearances, he was cheating on his wife?
If that's your way of thinking, I feel sorry for you and I really hope you don't breed. No one deserves to be murdered for cheating. Divorce definitely and humiliation maybe, but not murder.
And truth be told, we really don't know the nature of the relationship between he and his wife. It's entirely possible they were having problems and he was going to be leaving her. We just don't know and we probably never will as the story is going to be strictly one sided from here on out.
Well Sparta, I have bred already so sorry to disappoint....and where in my post did I say "he got what he deserved".....what my post did say was that this was not the best situation to be in, especially for a pro athlete with millions. And it appears the relationship was just that... a relationship. So.......with all that we as an audience have been given, we can only "assume" that McNair was somewhere maybe he should not have been. He was not a horrible person, and he did not deserve to be murdered...my hope (clearly explained) was that McNair realized that he was in the wrong place, maybe the gunman did not respond so well. But at the end of the day, there should be an open debate, just like we had last year when several NBA players were being robbed at gunpoint. Pro athletes live in a different world than the average person, and consequently must make tough decisions that you, nor I may ever have to make. When you exist in an environment that allows you access to anything and everything, you must have a strength better than you or I will ever have, Sparta. I will make sure to pass that knowledge down both of my children should they ever pursue athletics.