Some prospects in this year’s NFL Draft class have already made headlines for all the wrong reasons, and Missouri defensive end Shane Ray joined that list on Monday night as he was cited for possession of marijuana.
The arrest occurred on Monday morning in Missouri, according to Highway Patrol officials. Ray was released from custody shortly after the arrest with the citation for carrying 35 grams or less of marijuana.
Ray issued a statement following the incident:
“I’d like to apologize to my Mother, Fans, and prospective NFL teams for my poor judgment Monday morning. I am embarrassed and realize there are consequences for my actions. I was not under the influence nor impaired, therefore I was not detained. Fortunately, Monday’s incident only resulted in a citation. I will make better choices in the future. It is imperative that I continue to strive to better myself.My future NFL career has been something I have always dreamed about and is very important to me. I commit that my actions will represent that. There are no excuses here and I will take the necessary steps to ensure this will not happen again. I will not jeopardize my ability to have a positive impact on and off the field moving forward.”
Ray has been projected as a potential top-10 pick, but injury concerns have been slowly degrading his draft stock. Monday’s incident could turn a few more teams off as well, but at this late stage in the process, it’s unclear just how much impact there will be.
Ray is not the only draft prospect to get into trouble in the lead-up to the draft. Reports of Jameis Winston’s conduct at Florida State have caused some to speculate as to whether or not the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will/should take him with the first overall pick in the draft, and Nebraska DE Randy Gregory failed a drug test at the NFL Combine in February.
