The Sam Hurd story picked up a ton of steam when 670 The Score in Chicago reported that the authorities have a “double-digit” list of Hurd’s clients who are NFL players.
Hurd’s lawyer says that’s not the case.
“I haven’t seen all the material,” David Kenner told Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times. “But we have seen nothing to support that contention. We believe that is simply not the case.”
While it’s predictable that a lawyer would deny the alleged wrongdoing of his client, we remain skeptical of the notion that Hurd was an established drug kingpin. Based on the allegations, the player clearly was trying to be a player; he allegedly received a kilogram of cocaine with the intent to sell it. But if Hurd were running such an extensive operation as he allegedly claimed, selling four kilograms of cocaine per week, hoping to move five more per week, and also wanting to sell 1,000 pounds of marijuana weekly, there would have to be clear and obvious evidence of it, somewhere.
The fact that, in the 24-plus hours since the story broke, no one is reporting anything about the scope or breadth of the operation suggests that there was no operation.
But for the intervention of federal authorities, there may have been an operation. For now, though, it’s possible if not probable that Hurd was simply bragging in order to inspire respect, admiration, and/or fear in the folks with whom he was dealing.