NFL Won’t Allow NCAA All Time Sack Leader At Combine Because Of Old Misdemeanor
NFL prospect Jaylon Ferguson just wrapped up an impressive 4 year run at Louisiana Tech, procuring 45 sacks, ranking him 1st all-time in NCAA history.
The potential 1st round pick was named the 2018 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year last season, and had been preparing for the NFL Scouting Combine.
After a background check, the NFL has rescinded their Combine invite to Ferguson.
The check revealed Ferguson got into a fight at a McDonald's during his freshmen year, before he played a down of football with the Bulldogs.
As his agent explained in a statement, " He (Ferguson) received a deferred judgment and $189.00 fine, a proper punishment for a fight between two teenagers. Since that day Jaylon has been a fine and upstanding student athlete that personifies the things we are trying to teach our young people today."
I'm certainly not encouraging fighting. However, being disinvited from the NFL Combine by the league seems a bit harsh.
He received a proper punishment 4 years ago, and there's nothing else on his record that suggests a pattern of violent behavior.
The NFL put a new policy in place in 2016 that bans any prospect players from participating in the NFL Combine if they were ever convicted of a felony or misdemeanor of a violent or sexual nature.
A case by case basis would be a better approach.
The law fined him $189.00.
A strong performance at the Combine could vault Ferguson higher into the 1st round. Without the opportunity, he's losing the opportunity to make millions of dollars more.