JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A day after a teammate is sentenced to jail time, the Jaguars' leader on the football field spoke out about his top wide receiver's latest arrest.
Police arrested Matt Jones after he failed a drug test -- a violation of the plea deal he reached last year when officers charged him with cocaine possession. The Jaguars receiver was ordered to spend a week in jail in Arkansas for the violation.
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In court in Washington County, Jones slowly banged his head against a wall. He told the judge, " I made a bad decision, a dumb decision. It was definitely a dumb mistake on my part."
Jones admitted to a judge that he recently drank beer with friends on a golf course.
After failing a routine drug test, Jones was ordered to spend the rest of the week behind bars.
After learning of the football player's admittance, his teammate David Garrard said it gets tougher every time to continue to support someone who keeps making mistakes.
Last season, the NFL suspended Jones after he was arrested by Arkansas police on charges of cocaine possession. At that time, a judge agreed to send Jones' case to drug court, where he was allowed to undergo an intervention program and serve 30 hours of community service to avoid serving any time in jail.
Garrard said he has kept in contact with the troubled receiver all winter.
"I did talk to him last week, though, and I've been doing that all offseason, and I'm just trying to keep up with him ? I was hoping he wouldn't have anymore altercations, and hopefully this is the last one," Garrard said.
When Jones is released on Sunday, he is expected to immediately return to Jacksonville to report to Jaguars strength and conditioning training, where he can still expect the support of his quarterback.
"He did make another mistake and I just want to be here for him to encourage him. You know, we still believe in him. Hopefully, from this day forward he can just, you know, keep his nose clean," Garrard said. "Hopefully, being in jail for a week will straighten him out. I'm sure he has some kind of program that I'm sure he's going to have to be in once he gets out. Hopefully, that will straighten his life out because he does need help, and obviously we don't give up on him here and we still continue to fight for him and have his back here."
Monday Jones told the judge the drinking incident was his final slip-up. He said no one would have to worry about him anymore because he wouldn't make another mistake.
Jones now faces disciplinary action from both the Jaguars and the NFL. A spokesman from the NFL front office said it is aware of the situation and is looking into it.