Missouri Tigers QB Drew Lock apologizes for insensitive tweets

Missouri Tigers quarterback and 2018 Heisman Trophy candidate Drew Lock is the latest athlete apologizing for tweeting offensive remarks.

The Columbia Daily Tribune received an anonymous news tip and the paper investigated and discovered the tweets sent by Lock when he was 14 years old in 2011. The tweets have since been deleted but one was directed at the LGBT and African-American communities.

"I was recently made aware of five tweets from my eighth grade year in middle school that were perceived as insensitive and inappropriate," Lock told the Columbia Daily Tribune in a statement. "An anonymous person brought these to the attention of the Columbia Daily Tribune, and I appreciate having the opportunity to address them. I didn't intend to offend anyone with those messages, but I understand that this is an example of how words, even when written by a young teenager, can be interpreted by others as newsworthy, harmful and inappropriate."

Lock went on to say that he is not the same person who tweeted those remarks and takes his role as a team and community leader seriously.

"I have much more appreciation, understanding and compassion for all others," he told the Daily Tribune. "This moment in time gives me clarity and encouragement that everything I have experienced from 2011 to now has truly made me a better person. Thank you to all who have helped shape me into the person I am today."

Most recently, MLB players Trea Turner, Josh Hader and Sean Newcomb have come under fire for offensive tweets made when they were younger.

Days before the 2018 NFL Draft, Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen, selected with the seventh overall pick by the Buffalo Bills, came under fire for sending insensitive tweets while in high school.