LAS VEGAS — Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III is facing a driving under the influence charge after a fiery vehicle crash early Tuesday in Las Vegas that left a woman dead and Ruggs and his female passenger injured, authorities said.
According to police, Ruggs was driving a Chevrolet Corvette a little before 3:40 a.m. when it crashed into the rear of a Toyota Rav4 on a busy thoroughfare in a residential area several miles west of the Las Vegas Strip.
The Toyota caught fire and the driver died, police said. She was not immediately identified.
Ruggs, 22, “showed signs of impairment,” police said in a statement that said he will be charged with felony DUI resulting in death.
Ruggs and his female passenger were hospitalized. Ruggs’ injuries were described by officials as not life-threatening. His female passenger was not immediately identified.
Charges were not immediately filed. Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson said he was aware of the crash and would await results of the police investigation.
Probation is not an option in Nevada for a conviction on a charge of DUI causing death, which carries a possible sentence of 2 to 20 years in state prison.
Ruggs’ attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, said that on behalf of their client they also were investigating the crash “and ask everyone to reserve judgment until all the facts are gathered.”
The Raiders released a statement saying the team is aware of the accident involving Ruggs. “We are devastated by the loss of life and our thoughts and prayers go out to the victim’s family,” the team said. “We are in the process of gathering information and will have no further comment at this time.”
Ruggs is a second-year wide receiver who was taken 12th overall in the 2020 draft after a productive three-year career at Alabama, including helping the Crimson Tide win the national championship as a freshman in 2017.
Ruggs has 24 catches for a team-high 469 yards and two touchdowns this season. As a rookie in 2020, he had 26 catches for 452 yards and two touchdowns.
Ruggs, from Montgomery, Alabama, caught 12 passes for 229 yards and six touchdowns as a freshman with Alabama in 2017. He caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from Tua Tagovailoa in the 26-23 victory against Georgia in the championship game.
TRADES: Pittsburgh traded veteran outside linebacker Melvin Ingram to Kansas City for a sixth-round pick in the 2022 draft. The teams made the announcement a few hours before the NFL’s trade deadline.
The move gives Kansas City’s struggling defense some much-needed help and gives the 32-year-old Ingram a chance to start over. Ingram signed a one-year contract with the Steelers in July but saw his playing time decrease in recent weeks. He sat out last Sunday’s win over Cleveland with what the team called a groin injury amid reports that Ingram was hoping to be traded elsewhere.
• The New York Jets added some depth to the offensive line, acquiring guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif from the Kansas City Chiefs for tight end Daniel Brown.
Duvernay-Tardif, a licensed medical doctor who opted out of last season to work on the front lines in the battle against COVID-19, was active for the first time Monday night for the Chiefs’ 20-17 win over the New York Giants but didn’t play.
RAMS: The Los Angeles Rams released disgruntled receiver DeSean Jackson after just seven games with his hometown team.
Jackson will be available on the waiver wire Wednesday, GM Les Snead said. The Rams spent the past five days trying to find a trade partner for the 14-year NFL veteran, and he didn’t suit up for Los Angeles’ blowout win at Houston.
Jackson, who turns 35 on Dec. 1, asked to leave the Rams last week after making just eight catches for 221 yards and a touchdown in his first seven games with Los Angeles. The Rams signed him to an incentive-weighted, one-year contract with a guaranteed $2.75 million salary last spring to reunite him with Sean McVay, his offensive coordinator in Washington.
JETS: The New York Jets have hired John Beck, rookie Zach Wilson’s personal quarterback coach, as a full-time assistant.
Beck began working with the team last week and was on the sideline wearing team gear and a headset during the Jets’ 34-31 victory over Cincinnati on Sunday, led by Mike White’s stunning performance.
Wilson, who is sidelined with a sprained knee ligament, has worked with Beck for a few years. The two even met up in Utah during the Jets’ bye-week break two weeks ago.
PANTHERS: Carolina agreed to terms with undrafted free-agent quarterback Josh Love to join their practice squad, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The deal is contingent upon Love passing his physical, said the person, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the Panthers have not announced the deal.
The move provides the Panthers some depth at quarterback with Sam Darnold in the NFL concussion protocol and his status unclear for Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots. P.J. Walker would start if Darnold doesn’t play. Panthers Coach Matt Rhule said Monday he was hopeful that Darnold would be able to play Sunday but that he wouldn’t know until after Darnold had a chance to meet with doctors this week.
PACKERS: Green Bay released Jaylon Smith less than a month after signing the former Dallas Cowboys linebacker.
Smith’s agent, Doug Hendrickson, confirmed that the 26-year-old Smith has been released. ESPN first reported the move.
Smith joined the Packers on Oct. 7, one day after the Cowboys released him. Smith had led the Cowboys in tackles in 2019 and 2020, but he never came close to making that kind of impact with Green Bay.
He played a total of 27 defensive snaps in two games with the Packers. Smith was on the field for 27.9% of their defensive snaps at Chicago on Oct. 17 and in 13.9% of their defensive snaps against Washington a week later.
BROWNS: Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has been open many times this season when quarterback Baker Mayfield has either not passed to him or missed him because of an off-target throw or miscommunication.
Anyone who watches the Browns (4-4) closely already knows that.
But for those who aren’t aware, Beckham’s father, Odell Beckham Sr., apparently wants them to know.
Early Tuesday morning, a video was posted on Beckham Sr.’s verified Instagram account highlighting the Browns’ missed opportunities from Weeks 3-6 when OBJ was open.
Later Tuesday, Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James showed support for Beckham by tweeting, “OBJ will show again why he’s special. WR1 #FreeOBJ.”
Beckham and Akron native James are friends. They spoke about Cleveland when the Browns acquired Beckham in March 2019 in a trade with the New York Giants, and OBJ even jokingly asked James if he could borrow his mansion in Bath Township.
The post on Beckham Sr.’s Instagram account includes a caption containing a series of hashtags, including “#ihurt4him” and “#iloveclevelandlikeilovehome#ilovemysonMO.”
Someone who commented on the post claimed Mayfield “just doesn’t wanna get Odell the ball.” Beckham Sr. responded to the comment with three check mark emojis.
The video, which originates from YouTube, doesn’t include footage from Sunday’s 15-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in which Beckham caught one pass on one official target for 6 yards.
In six games this season, Beckham has 17 catches on 34 targets for 232 yards and two carries for 14 yards. He has not scored a touchdown.
Beckham, who’s making $15.75 million this year and will turn 29 on Friday, hasn’t talked to Browns beat writers since Oct. 14, when he compared himself with NBA star James Harden to explain he wants the ball, but also insisted he wants to win a Super Bowl more than anything.
“The ultimate goal is to win the championship, and I feel like I’m in a great situation to do that,” Beckham said. “And it may not be me (catching the ball). There’s going to be days where it will be my day.”
Since Beckham made those comments, the Browns have lost 2 of 3 games, all at home. They’ll have an AFC North matchup on the road Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals (5-3).
Last season in Cincinnati, Beckham suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee on Oct. 25, 2020. He worked tirelessly to come back and said in late July he thought the Browns had “a special opportunity” in 2021.
So far, this season has been a disappointment for Beckham and the team.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
