Prominent sports radio host Mike Francesca appears to have blamed New York Giants draft pick Corey Ballentine for a shooting in which he was injured and his college teammate Dwane Simmons was killed over the weekend.

Simmons’s family say police told them the two players were about to leave a party early on Sunday near their college, Washburn University, when a vehicle pulled up to them. They talked to people in the car before shots were fired and Simmons was killed. He was 23. Police in Topeka, Kansas, have not suggested Simmons or Ballentine were culpable for the incident.

On Monday, Francesca chose to focus on whether Ballentine was “the right kind of guy”.

Mike Francesa, who has "been around" the #Giants for 40 years, has a thought about sixth-round draft pick Corey Ballentine getting shot. pic.twitter.com/su0EWCKskL — Ƒunhouse (@BackAftaThis) April 29, 2019

“Listen, you can have an off-field incident with any draft pick any time,” Francesa said. “But when you finish your draft and stress how you went out of your way to take the right kind of guys, guys that you want on the team, guys that are going to be great character guys and you stress that as strongly as the Giants did, it looks pretty bad when one of them gets shot on a Saturday night. It does not look good. It’s just more of the same for the Giants, who just can’t get out of their own way, no matter what they say.”

Ballentine’s injuries are not life threatening, and he should make a full recovery. Simmons’s father spoke of the effect of his son’s death on his family. “This was a senseless murder,” Navarro Simmons said on Sunday. “This shattered a lot of people.”

On Sunday Washburn’s football coach, Craig Schurig, paid tribute to Simmons, who had played for the team for three years. “Heartbreaking news about Dwane Simmons,” Schurig said in a statement. “Dwane is one of the most energetic and well-liked players I have ever coached at Washburn. Dwane’s infectious smile and love for football and his teammates was truly inspirational. Our prayers of healing go out to his family, his parents Navarro and Yasmine Simmons and Chaquilla Williams.”

Ballentine plays at cornerback and was selected in the sixth round by the Giants on Saturday, shortly before the shooting. “Our thoughts are with Dwane Simmons’ family, friends and teammates and the rest of the Washburn community,” the Giants said in a statement.