24 January 2023 , 20:01
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Former Denver Broncos star Derek Wolfe insists he did "everything by the book" after being criticised for shooting dead a 200lb mountain lion. Super Bowl 50 winner Wolfe has faced a backlash on social media after posting a picture of his kill, but he says his actions were both legal and necessary after the animal had taken up residence beneath the porch of a house in Colorado.
The 32-year-old says 200 complaints were made to the local authorities, but speaking to Tucker Carlson of Fox News, he says he conducted himself accordingly, adding he plans to eat the meat.
"I can't believe what's happening to me," he said. "I can't believe that going on a legal hunt and doing something legal, by the book... The Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) have had 200 calls trying to turn me in like I did something wrong. I did nothing wrong and everything was legal.
"This wasn't a paid hunt, I didn't pay for this hunt. It was just something I was interested in doing, I love to hunt. (A friend) called me and said 'There is a cat up here, do you want to help?' I said 'Yeah, let's go'.
"It was up on this woman's porch and living underneath her porch. When we talked to the landowner and they said 'We have house cats and they are acting weird and we don't know why'. Well, it's because you have a fully grown, 200lbs, 8.5ft mountain lion walking across your front yard.
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"We got the dogs on him and I've been through some tough training camps, but this hunt beat me up bad. I'm all cut up and scraped up. I was in full-body cramps and I barely made it up there, and when we finally got to the cat, it was at 9,600ft altitude.
"I was able to make a good, ethical shot and I harvested the cat and got him out of there, everything by the book. This was completely legal. I took the meat and got it processed; I'm going to eat that cat."
Derek Wolfe posted the picture of himself with the dead 195lb mountain lion on Instagram (derekwolfe_95/Instagram)Former defensive end Wolfe was drafted by the Broncos in 2012 in the second round, and he had eight seasons at Mile High stadium racking up 33 sacks in 96 games. A move to the Baltimore Ravens followed, but he was hampered by injuries and he played his last game in 2021 before retiring a year later.
Wolfe posted his picture holding up the mountain lion after it had been killed on Instagram on January 19, prompting a mixed reaction. While some celebrated his kill, others vented their anger and sadness at the death of the animal.
However, CPW confirmed in a statement to TMZ Sports that Wolfe was licensed to hunt mountain lions and he had acted lawfully.