Three Bodies

He was one of the most gifted tight ends in the history of the National Football League. He played in a Super Bowl. He signed a $40 million contract. He donated $50,000 to his owner's charity on the day he signed that contract, a little teary-eyed, and said it made him feel good to give.

He also killed at least three people.

On July 16, 2012, Aaron Hernandez fired a revolver into a car stopped at a red light in Boston's South End, killing Daniel de Abreu and Safiro Furtado - two Cape Verdean immigrants who had never met him before that night. The alleged trigger: de Abreu had bumped into Hernandez at a nightclub and spilled his drink. This happened six weeks before Hernandez signed his $40 million contract.

In February 2013, Hernandez shot his associate Alexander Bradley in the face at a strip club in Florida, costing Bradley his right eye. Then he returned to New England Patriots training camp.

On June 16, 2013, Hernandez drove Odin Lloyd - 27 years old, a semi-professional football player, the boyfriend of his fiancée's sister - to an industrial park near his mansion and shot him five times.

Nine days later, Massachusetts State Police arrested Aaron Hernandez at his home in handcuffs. The New England Patriots released him within hours.

Three Bodies tells the complete story:

Bristol - Aaron Hernandez grew up in Bristol, Connecticut, the son of Dennis Hernandez, known as "The King," who was both the father Aaron worshipped and an abusive alcoholic who beat his sons regularly. When Dennis died of complications from hernia surgery in 2006, Aaron was 16. His life unraveled without the stabilizing force of the father who was also his abuser.

The Rise - He was the best high school tight end prospect in the country. He won the Mackey Award at Florida. He fell to the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft because of background concerns - and the Patriots bet their organizational culture could manage whatever had worried other teams. For three seasons, it appeared they might be right.

Three Bodies - The nightclub. The spilled drink. The car at the traffic light. Alexander Bradley's eye. Odin Lloyd's text to his sister - "1 step closer 2 the promised land" - sent from the car that was taking him to his death.

The Fall - Convicted of Lloyd's murder in April 2015, sentenced to life without parole. Acquitted of the double murder in April 2017. Five days after his acquittal, found hanging in his prison cell. He left a note for his daughter: "I love you so much and always will no matter what."

What Remained - In November 2017, Boston University researchers found Stage 3 chronic traumatic encephalopathy in his brain - the most severe case ever documented in a person his age, concentrated in the frontal lobes responsible for judgment and impulse control. Dr. Ann McKee: "This is substantial damage that took years to develop... these changes have been evolving for over a decade." He had been playing tackle football since he was a child.

Book 1 of the On the Field series: football's criminal cases told in full.