Nate Webster, former NFL linebacker, sentenced to 12 years in prison

Nate Webster, a former NFL linebacker who last started with the Denver Broncos in 2008, was found guilty on Wednesday of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and sentenced to 12 years in prison. (Getty Images)

Nate Webster, a former NFL linebacker who last played as a starter with the Denver Broncos in 2008, was sentenced on Wednesday to 12 years in prison after being found guilty in April with four counts of unlawful sexual conduct with the underage teen daughter of an assistant coach on the Cincinnati Bengals, reported the Washington Post via the Associated Press:

Prosecutors say Webster had sex with the girl in 2009 when she was 15 and threatened to harm her if she told anyone. Webster admitted having sex with the girl the next year, when she was 16. Sixteen is Ohio’s legal age of consent.

Webster’s attorney says Webster will appeal the verdict and sentence.

Prosecutors say Webster rejected a plea deal that would have sent him to prison for four years.

The 34-year-old Webster played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cincinnati Bengals and the Denver Broncos over an eight year career in the NFL. At the time of his charges, he was a coach at Bellevue High School in Kentucky.