Marinovich to Leave Avengers for Shot at NFL

After two up-and-down seasons, Todd Marinovich has parted ways with the Avengers of the Arena Football League and will try for another shot at the NFL in the spring. The former USC and Los Angeles Raider quarterback played sparingly last season, hampered by injuries and an ongoing recovery from heroin addiction.

“By the time NFL camp comes around, I’ll have over a year of sobriety,” he said. “And I’ll have documentation of treatment and testing.”

Earlier this month, Marinovich, 32, violated his probation by missing three drug tests and was ordered to perform an additional 32 hours of community service. He is scheduled to complete treatment in January.

To have contact with NFL teams, he must seek reinstatement to the league, which suspended him for failing a drug test when he played for the Raiders in 1992.

Meanwhile, Marinovich said he has been training with his father, Marv, and working for a friend’s landscaping company.

“Digging ditches, taking out trees, pouring concrete,” he said. “It has given me a whole new appreciation for the NFL.”