As the New York Jets welcome Super Bowl XLIII MVP Santonio Holmes to town, they should be very concerned about how much of him they’ll actually see.
Given our report from Saturday that Holmes is facing a four-game suspension for violation of the substance abuse policy, the move means on the surface that the Jets will have to prepare to perform without Holmes for the first 25 percent of the 2010 season.
It also means that, if the suspension sticks, Holmes will be one false move away from a one-year suspension.
Assuming, based on his history with marijuana (and his recently stated intention to “wake n bake”), that Holmes’ violations flow from an inability to quit smoking pot, he could become the NFL’s next Ricky Williams -- a guy who loves weed more than he loves playing football.
If that’s the case, it’s unclear whether the Jets will see much of Holmes on the field at all, in 2010 or beyond.
UPDATE: To be clear, we’re not talking about the Ricky Williams of today, who has chosen football over weed. We’re talking about the Ricky Williams of several years ago, who chose weed over football on multiple occasions.