Butler Cut

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Humble, soft-spoken and loaded with promise, 49ers free-agent linebacker Ezra Butler would be the last person one would expect to be caught in a 2008 Hummer on suspicion of DUI with a marijuana in the car at 11:30 at night in Reno. But that's what happened on Saturday night. On Tuesday, the 49ers released him.

A South African, Butler wound his way out of the country by first playing cricket in England and then landed in Southern California at the behest of his Uncle Jonathan, a Grammy Award-winning Gospel singer. There, he played football.

"I didn't know what 'down' meant until my sophomore year," Butler said at the 49ers' May minicamp. He also said the transition was difficult from South Africa and London to California. He was teased because of his accent.

Ezra Butler has promise.

daylife.com

Ezra Butler has promise.

But his uncle thought it was worth it. In South Africa, there are blacks, whites and coloreds, Butler said. As a colored, he was on the bottom of the social order "I came here because of the opportunity," he said.

At nearly 6-2, the 245-pound Butler runs a scary 4.57 40-yard dash and was a mad tackler his junior season at Nevada-Reno with 75 tackles, 15.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and five and a half sacks. He kept it up his senior year with 87 tackles, 12.5 behind the line and two-and-a-half sacks. But that's when he showed his first sign of trouble. Last season he was suspended for a game for breaking team rules. He also tested positive for pot.

A hamstring pull kept him from participating in the combine, and to his surprise, he went undrafted. A number of teams wanted to sign him as a free agent, but he chose the 49ers because of the 3-4 scheme and the greater possibility of making the team.

One NFL scout tagged Butler as a second-round talent and strongly urged his team to take him in the sixth round. But ultimately his team, like many others, was scared off by the positive drug test.

Now, Butler is threatening to fade away altogether. Another team might take a chance on him, but the more likely route is to prove himself in the Arena League or the CFL. The incident in Reno is too bad for Butler and the 49ers, who were working him at the inside "ted" linebacker spot.

Posted By: Kevin Lynch (Email) | May 27 2008 at 07:36 PM

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