athletes say/do the darnedest things.

You can always count on athletes for saying or doing something stupid. So how do you put the genie back in the bottle? Ask the Kansas City Chiefs Larry Johnson. From ESPN.com:

Johnson will not play for second straight; Thigpen to start at QB

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Saying he was "kind of disgusted with myself," a nervous-looking Larry Johnson apologized Wednesday for behavior that has led to an NFL investigation and to his benching for a second straight week.

"I want to start off saying I apologize to the Hunt family, my family, first and foremost, the fans, teammates, coaches and players," Kansas City's two-time Pro Bowl running back said.

"This is the first time in my life I actually had to stand up, I mean actually woke up and kind of be disgusted with myself and disgusted as far as the way my life and my career is heading right now."

Johnson did not play last week against Tennessee as punishment for violating team rules. Since then, it's been disclosed that police and the NFL are investigating a report that Johnson spat several times on a woman at a Kansas City nightclub. Read more.

Verdict: UGLY PR
Athletes, celebrities and public personalities often say or do dumb things that land them in hot water. It happens to all of us, really, but not only a fraction of us and our actions become fodder for op-ed pieces, fantasy dork blogs and gossip rags. And when that happens, as it did for Larry Johnson, you've got to schedule a public mea culpa to get yourself out of the public's doghouse.

It usually works (Hugh Grant, for example), but sometimes it doesn't (Terrell Owens, Pac Man Jones, etc.). I suspect it'll work for Johnson because, unlike T.O. and Pac Man, he's well liked and doesn't have a history of being a jackass.