Trouble Season for NFL Players

So far so good for the Eagles and the law.

No armed robberies. No DUIs or weapons charges, either.

For some teams around the NFL, it was a bad Saturday, with four players arrested and taken into custody.

In the NFC East, the Giants look like they may be without cornerback DeAndre Baker for a bit, while the Washington Redskins may have to proceed for the foreseeable future without receiver Cody Latimer, who played with the Giants last year but signed with Washington as a free agent in the offseason.

Baker, along with Seahawks cornerback Quinton Dunbar, who played with the Redskins for the previous five years before signing in Seattle this offseason, turned themselves into authorities on Saturday after being charged with an armed robbery during house party last Wednesday.

Latimer was arrested in the wee hours of Saturday morning and booked on assault in second the second degree for allegedly menacing, illegal discharge of a firearm, and was held on a $25,000 bond.

Oh, but there’s more.

Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver was arrested in Houston on Saturday on charges of DWI and unlawful carrying of a weapon. Police were tipped off when a vehicle driven by Oliver was seen not maintaining its lane. An open beer can was between his legs when he was pulled over and a pistol was later found in his car.

That’s four players who found trouble so far very early in this offseason.

That’s not a lot when you consider that there are 90 players employed by 32 teams at the moment for a total of 2,880.

That’s less than one percent.

Still, it’s alarming and, for the franchises that employ them, embarrassing.

Typically, it is the window between the final minicamp in June until training camps open in mid to late July – about a six-week stretch – that causes some sleepless nights for NFL coaches and general managers.

It is when players are left to their own devices that sometimes leads to no good.

It is why Eagles head coach Doug Pederson, and certainly others, before sending their players into the vacation period between minicamp and training camp, invariably touch on staying out of trouble and making sure they are doing the right things, spending time with family, and relaxing before the grind begins.

Most listen. Some do not.

The Eagles have had issues in the past with a player or two during that time, so they are not immune.

No team is, really. All a front office can do is cross its fingers and hope it has built a roster that is strong enough to withstand the temptations of trouble until everyone can reconvene again for camp.

This year, “trouble season” has come a bit earlier than usual since players aren’t allowed to be in a team’s facilities and are bound only by virtual workouts.

Exactly what occurs in a virtual workout and how long they last isn’t exactly known, but there is most likely plenty of free time available for the players.

Saturday’s dark day in the league could be just a few isolated incidents.

Or there could be more, maybe much more, still to come.