NFL SOBER COACH: Josh Brent convicted of DUI Manslaughter wants to rejoin The Dallas Cowboys Team.
Jerry Jones is known for taking on troubled players like Adam ‘Pacman’ Jones (strip club shooting), Terrell ‘T.O.’ Owens (severe personality disorders), and even Sam Hurd with his drug dealing issues. The question is should Jerry Jones take on another troubled soul or has Josh Brent learned his lesson with his rehab stint and time in jail? What do you think?
OXNARD, Calif. — Retired defensive tackle Josh Brent will meet with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on Thursday in his bid to seek reinstatement to the league, according to Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones.
Jason Garrett says the Cowboys will continue to support Josh Brent and welcome him back if he rejoins the team, Todd Archer writes.
If Brent is cleared to return, Jones said the Cowboys would clear a roster spot for him.
Brent has not played since December 2012 after his involvement in a car accident that killed his friend and teammate Jerry Brown. Brent was released from an addiction rehabilitation facility on July 29 and sent a letter seeking reinstatement the next day.
He was sentenced to 180 days in jail and 10 years’ probation in January after being convicted of intoxication manslaughter. He spent the final 45 days of his sentence at Enterhealth, an alcohol and drug treatment center near Dallas.
Brent could face further punishment from the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Jones said he would not ask Goodell to speed up the reinstatement process.
“Good judgment tells us let this happen on the commissioner’s time,” Jones said after Monday’s practice. “Seriously, I don’t want to be presumptuous and there’s no pressure. He looks and should look at all discipline straight to the player … There’s no place for input, in my mind, from the club asking to facilitate something that might be to the advantage of the club. This is about the player, the player’s future, the NFL and our policies in the NFL.”
Brent will meet with Roger Goodell on Thursday and if he is reinstated, the Cowboys would clear a roster spot for him, according to Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones.
Brent retired prior to the 2013 season. He joined the Cowboys in 2010 as a seventh-round pick in the supplemental draft, playing in 39 games with five starts.
Jones and the Cowboys have supported Brent since the accident, as has Brown’s mother, Stacey Jackson.
Former Cowboys Michael Irvin and Nate Newton, who had their own off-field issues as players, have offered to serve as mentors for Brent with adviser David Wells also serving as a confidante. Wells has a long history of working with troubled Cowboys, including Irvin, Newton, Adam Jones, Dez Bryant and others.
“All you can do is give him support and try to direct him in the right way,” Newton said last week. “Let him know that what he’s doing is a great thing and can only benefit him and the Cowboys alike. I’m a realist, man. Don’t get caught up in, ‘We love you.’ Get caught up in, ‘I’ve got a second chance. Do I love myself?’ That’s who you’ve got to love.
“If you love and respect yourself, then the Cowboys are going to benefit. If you don’t love and respect yourself, the first person that’s going down is you. For the Cowboys, you’re just another story. Unfortunately, it can be a sad story. Or it can be a great story.”
Cali Estes works with pro football players and can be found at www.theaddictionscoach.com or call 1.800.706.0318