Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche made himself one of the most scrutinized players in this year’s draft class, when he fell out of a hotel window in Atlanta and was subsequently arrested for marijuana possession.
So the priority for him here at the Scouting Combine is setting the record straight.
Nkemdiche said he was drinking — “I was drunk” — at the time of the incident, denying that he was under the influence of marijuana, synthetic or otherwise. He said there were other players in the room with him, including Ole Miss tackle and potential top pick Laremy Tunsil, but “no one wanted to take the fall.”
Of course, if someone would have taken the fall out the window, it would have been better too.
“It was a rash decision,” Nkemdiche said. “It was embarrassing.”
He said he’s had multiple conversations with teams, and that he’s trying to be up front with them about what happened that night, and saying “I have changed.”
“People who know me, that’s not who I am,” he said.
Nkemdiche also admitted to being “lazy” on the field, which is probably of more concern to NFL teams than one wild night which ended up in broken glass and a police car.