Ex-NFL player Derek Wolfe says he's faced a ton of backlash after killing a mountain lion that was allegedly wreaking havoc in Colorado ... saying there have been more than 200 complaints filed against him -- despite the hunt being 100% legal.
The former Denver Broncos defensive end described the harassment he's experienced in an interview with Tucker Carlson on Monday ... saying he "can't believe what's happened to me" following last week's hunt.
"I can't believe that going on a legal hunt, doing something legal, by the book -- they've had 200 calls to Colorado Parks and Wildlife trying to turn me in like I did something wrong," Wolfe said on Fox News.
"[I] did nothing wrong. Everything's legal."
Wolfe explained mountain lions have become a serious issue in the area ... claiming there have been 23 attacks on humans since 1990. On top of that, Wolfe says 15 dogs were killed by mountain lions within a 30-day period in an area near Boulder last year.
Of course, animal lovers have been infuriated with the whole situation ... with some claiming the NFLer should have left the cat alone. But, the hunter says Colorado Parks and Wildlife approved of his plan to kill the cat ... and he went about the whole thing the right way.
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"[I] was able to make a good shot, a good ethical shot, and harvested the cat. Got him out of there and did everything by the book."
"This was completely legal. CPW came down and checked the cat in for me," the 32-year-old said.
As for what happened to the mountain lion ... Wolfe says it's gonna end up on his dinner table.
"I took the meat and got it processed. I'm gonna eat that cat."