Former NFL great, Lawrence Taylor, was charged with third-degree rape of a 16-year-old girl on Thursday (May 6) in New York.

According to Reuters, the 51-year-old NFL Hall of Famer allegedly paid $300 to have sex with the underage girl during the early hours of Thursday morning in a Holiday Inn hotel in Montebello, 25 miles north of New York City, local police said.

Taylor, otherwise known as "LT" during his NFL career, denies all charges and will plead not guilty to all the charges.

His lawyer, Arthur Aidala, says he's the victim of a setup.

"As with every celebrity, Mr. Taylor is a target," Aidala said. "Lawrence Taylor did not rape anybody, am I clear? We're going to fight it as hard as he fought when he was a linebacker for the New York Giants."

However, local police say the 16-year-old identified Taylor as the man who paid cash to sleep with her, and another source told arresting officers that "he had no idea the girl was underage."

Ramapo Police Chief Peter Browerr said: "ignorance is not an excuse to an individual's age."

According to TMZ, a comdon was found in the hotel room.

In addition to rape charges, LT was also hit with a patronizing a prostitute charge. If convicted, he could face up to four years in prison.

The retired football player's wife told TMZ that she believes he is innocent, also calling it a "setup."

He is currently free on $75,000 bail.