The Las Vegas Raiders were hit with another curveball coming off their bye week, but this time it was tragic as they and the rest of the NFL learned that Henry Ruggs was involved in a car crash that left a woman dead.
Ruggs came out of the incident with non-life-threatening injuries but was arrested on a DUI charge. Immediately after his arrest was made, the Raiders released Ruggs which could mean football has seen the last of the wide receiver on the field.
It is a truly sad and disheartening event and Derek Carr was emotional when talking about the situation. “It broke my wife and I’s heart, honestly. We talked about it a little bit, but I can only talk about it so much. Whether it’s fair or not, I have to compartmentalize and I have a job to do. I want to say a lot of different things. But we have a game this week and I’ve got a job to do, and so do the guys in that locker room. We have all of these things that we still have to do. I don’t know the right way to handle it, but I’m doing my best.”
Carr revealed he has not spoken to Ruggs, but expressed he still loves his teammate despite the accident. “No. Honestly with what we were told, I wasn’t sure if we were able to. I haven’t reached out. I will always be here for him. That won’t change and I will prove that over the course of time to him, not to anybody else. He needs people to love him right now. He’s probably feeling a certain type of way about himself right now and he needs to be loved. If nobody else will do it, I’ll do it.”
There is no excuse for what Ruggs did, but right now the families involved deserve all the prayers and love they can get as they navigate the circumstances. Although the Raiders have a Week 9 matchup against the New York Giants, it is hard to think about football when real life serves you with such an unprecedented event.
