The New Orleans Saints will be without Willie Snead; one of their more talented weapons, for the first three games on the season.
After Sean Payton confirmed the news; with no specific reasons for the suspension, we now know the whole story.
Via Ramon Antonio Vargas of The New Orleans Advocate
Wide receiver Willie Snead will be suspended for the first three games of the season. Coach Sean Payton confirmed the news. The suspension stems from Snead being arrested on the morning of June 11 in Kenner on allegations of drunk driving.
“We are aware of it, on top of it, and that will factor into how we go into planning the early part of this season,” Payton said. “Obviously it’s unfortunate, and I think knowing Willie, a bit surprising. So we kind of go from there.”
“We are aware of the news regarding Willie Snead’s suspension,” general manager Mickey Loomis said in a statement. “Our focus is on finalizing our roster and preparing for the beginning of the 2017 regular season and working with the players on our team.”
The details of the arrest are as follows:
Kenner police allege that Snead crashed into another car in the 1100 block of Joe Yenni Boulevard about 6:55 a.m., less than a half-mile away from his home. Police said Snead’s 2017 Jeep Wrangler had “heavy front-end damage” and was facing westbound in the eastbound lanes of travel when an officer spoke with him.
The officer noticed “the slight odor of an alcoholic beverage emanating from his breath” as well as bloodshot eyes, police said in the report.
Police allege that Snead said he had three glasses of Maker’s Mark whiskey in downtown New Orleans earlier that night but had stopped drinking hours beforehand.
After performing poorly on a field sobriety test, he agreed to submit to what is commonly referred to as a Breathalyzer test — and he registered a .125, above Louisiana legal limit of .08.
Snead was jailed on counts of driving while intoxicated and failure to maintain proper control of a vehicle, and his Jeep was towed. He posted $1,150 bail for his release the same day.
Snead is due for a hearing at 1st Jefferson Parish Court in Metairie that is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 11, the same day New Orleans opens its season against the Minnesota Vikings.
After losing top wideout Brandin Cooks to the Patriots, & with Snead on the shelf for 3 games; a largely suspect group of Saints WRs (led by Ted Gina Jr.) will be left to pick up the slack for Drew Brees.
While second-year WR Michael Thomas is talented, I’m sure the Saints ideally didn’t want his work load to be this heavy to start the year.
Snead issued a statement shortly after the report broke:
“I am truly disappointed (and) embarrassed by my actions that have lead to this decision,” Snead said in a statement, later adding that “I can’t change what happened but I can make sure that this never happens again. I won’t let this careless act define my career in the NFL or in life.”
Snead played in 15 games last year, hauling in 72 passes for 895 yards & 5 TDs.