A handful of Redskins avoided their own Manti Te'o situation when they learned that a woman they communicated with via Twitter turned out to be a fake.

A woman who went by the name Sidney Ackerman on Twitter displayed photos in her avatar that she claimed were of her but were actually a porn star named CJ Miles. At one time Ackerman's account had more than 18,000 followers, and she claimed to others that she had relationships with players on other teams as well, multiple sources have said in the past.

According to NFL.com, which first reported this situation, the league investigated Ackerman. The story said she did not ask for money or other benefits and seemed more intent on just having relationships with the players. In the end, it was not like the Te'o situation because none of the players developed a deep relationship with Ackerman.

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One Redskins player said he "tweeted a couple times" with Ackerman but ended it a year ago after another player warned him.

"After it came out that it was faked, a lot of guys said they talked to her," this player said. "I talked to her for a couple weeks, but I stopped because she was crazy."

Phillip Daniels, the Redskins' director of player development, posted a warning on a board in the locker room to the players in December when it was discovered Ackerman was not who she purported to be. Her false identity came to light because of her association with the podcast "HTTR." One member of the podcast, who goes by the Twitter handle @HTTR24_7, exposed Ackerman in a series of tweets Dec. 19 after he had discovered Ackerman was using Miles' pictures as her own.

Later that day, Daniels posted a warning about her that read: "Stay away from @RedRidnH00d. Avoid her on Twitter. Avoid her on Instagram. Do not converse with this person on any social media platform. She is not who she claims to be."

"It's crazy that it happened," the player said. "It might be because it's on the Internet, a lot of people come on to athletes. Most are gullible and think they can get the best looking women. ... It was model pictures. You always have to be careful. You don't want to [have a relationship] unless you meet them in person. I'm glad Phil caught that or someone else would have been on ESPN."

jkeim@washingtonexaminer.com