HULK SMASH!Giants lineman David Diehl, who wore a Croatia jersey with friends to support their ancestral country’s team (top), was still wearing it yesterday in police custody after his Queens DWI arrest.
HULK SMASH! Giants lineman David Diehl, who wore a Croatia jersey with friends to support their ancestral country’s team (inset), was still wearing it yesterday in police custody after his Queens DWI arrest. (
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Giants Super Bowl lineman David Diehl spun a super tale about his boozy fender bender before apologizing to the team and fans yesterday over his DWI arrest.
The Big Blue tackle told cops he was pulling out of a Queens parking space when he was hit by another vehicle and knocked into a parked car.
“I was driving a BMW and trying to pull out of a space while another car was pulling out,” he told cops, according to a prosecutor.
But law-enforcement sources said that a drunken Diehl, 31, crashed his black BMW into two vehicles on 35th Street near 31st Street in Astoria at around 8:20 p.m. Sunday after boozing it up at a nearby bar where he was watching a televised soccer match.
Diehl later tweeted an apology.
“I’ve worked hard during my career to set a positive example, and yesterday I fell far short of this standard,” Diehl tweeted.
“I apologize to my family, my fans, my teammates, the New York Giants, and the NFL. I made a poor decision that I sincerely regret, and, as always, take full responsibility for my actions.”
Cops said Diehl looked as if he had been blindsided by a linebacker after the crash. He was “unsteady on his feet,” reeked of alcohol and had bloodshot, watery eyes, according to court papers.
Cops said Diehl’s blood-alcohol content was .18 percent, which is more than twice the legal limit.
Diehl was charged with driving while intoxicated and released on his own recognizance. Diehl’s New York state driving privileges were suspended. His driver’s license is from New Jersey, where he lives.
His next court date is July 26 — the first day of Giants camp.
Diehl, whose family hails from Croatia, had come from nearby Scorpio’s on Broadway, where he had been watching Croatia defeat Ireland, 3-1, in the European Championships, officials said.
Diehl enthusiastically tweeted, “Goooooaaaaaallllllllllllllll!!!!!” twice during the contest.
He had also tweeted earlier in the day that he was at a charity golf tournament at the Westchester Country Club.
Although no one was injured in the collision, the owner of one of the cars Diehl hit was upset.
“Everyone’s saying how he did charity earlier that day,” said Ruth Goldman, whose husband’s Volvo got sideswiped in the collision.
“That means nothing if you’re going to be an idiot after that. He had no business getting into that car.”
The man whose back Diehl gets paid to protect also weighed in.
“I’m obviously concerned about my friend and I feel bad for him that he’s going through this,’’ quarterback Eli Manning said during an appearance at the Guiding Eyes for the Blind golf classic at Mount Kisco Country Club.
“I wish nothing had happened, but besides that I’m just hoping everything gets worked out and he’ll be OK.”