Nearly five years ago, Eagles cornerback Ronald Darby witnessed an encounter that resulted in Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston being accused of rape, when they were teammates at Florida State. Darby also witnessed the events from nearly two years ago that resulted in Winston being accused of groping an Uber driver.
“I felt the need to come forward and clarify some inaccurate accounts of the evening of March 13, 2016 when myself, a friend and Jameis Winston took an Uber ride in Arizona,” Darby said in a statement issued to Jay Glazer of FOX. “There were three of us in the car, not just one as has been reported. Myself and Jameis were in the backseat. I am confident that nothing inappropriate in nature happened in the car that evening and Jameis did not have any physical contact with the Uber driver. The accusations are just not true.”
The Uber driver claims that Winston was in the front seat. Uber deactivated Winston’s account, since Winston’s account was the one that was used to order the ride.
“I believe the driver was confused as to the number of passengers in the car and who was sitting next to her,” Winston’s Friday statement declared. “The accusation is false, and given the nature of the allegation and increased awareness and consideration of these types of matters, I am addressing this false report immediately. At the time of the alleged incident, I denied the allegations to Uber, yet they still decided to suspend my account.”
The NFL has confirmed that the matter is under review. Winston has not been charged with any crime or sued by the driver.