8:17pm: According to info from five NFL teams, Ray failed a drug test early on in his career at Missouri, Albert Breer of NFL.com tweets.
7:03pm: Top draft prospect Shane Ray was cited for possession of marijuana this morning in Cooper County, Missouri, according to Brandon Kiley of KTGR (via Twitter). Ray’s arrest report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol indicates that he was cited for possession of 35 grams or less of pot along with a traffic infraction.
The timing could not be worse for Ray, as we are just three days from the NFL draft. The outside linebacker has been universally projected as a first-round pick with some seeing him as a candidate for the top 10. Now, Ray has thrown that all into flux with his Monday morning misstep.
Just last week, Ray’s stock was helped by news that he would only need to rest his injured foot rather than undergo surgery. Earlier today, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com culled the opinions of several executives and declared Ray to be one of the five “can’t-miss” prospects in this year’s crop. Despite increasingly lax attitudes towards marijuana use nationally and Ray’s high talent level, one has to imagine that the linebacker could take a tumble down draft boards after this incident.