Saturday, October 11, 2008
Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones was not available to speak with reporters Thursday after a Tuesday night incident involving Jones and a bodyguard in a hotel bathroom in the south-Central American city of Dallas, Texas. Officials are calling the incident private and said charges are not likely to be filed. As of Thursday, the Cowboys have not disciplined Jones.
Police were notified by hotel staff after workers heard a disturbance in the hotel lobby men’s bathroom where Jones and his bodyguard arguing. Jones and his bodyguard told police everything was fine and were driven away by a friend.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones spoke with members of the media on Thursday, saying that he was “very disappointed in that we’re having to deal with this,” saying that the altercation was not a big deal.
“They were literally kidding each other,” Jerry Jones told the Associated Press on Thursday. “They were jiving around … and all of a sudden one of them starting saying some things, and here you go.”
Cowboys nose tackle Tank Johnson said everything was overblown and shouldn’t distract the team.
“This is not that big of a deal,” Johnson told the Associated Press. “Nobody’s in jail, nobody’s in trouble, nobody’s hurt. We’re all here ready to practice, ready to work.”
National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell told ESPN radio that he was frustrated that the league was even discussing the incident involving Jones and his bodyguard. Goodell also said the NFL league is investigating the matter.
Jones has already been in police trouble in connection with a shooting at a Las Vegas strip club and other incidents which have led to his arrest six times since he was drafted in 2005 by the Tennessee Titans. Jones was suspended in April 2007 by Goodell and allowed to return to play in August.
Jones said this after his reinstatement: “I know my responsibilities to the NFL and I’m going to hold my own and do what I need to do to make sure I stay where I am right now, which is reinstated. I work hard every day to make sure I don’t make the same mistakes. Can I say I would never ever make the same mistakes? No, I can’t say that. I’ll make sure I put myself in way better situations than I have put myself in the past.”
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the NFL. They are based in the Dallas suburb of Irving.