"You’d never think he could hurt a soul" - Tua Tagovailoa chokes up talking about Henry Ruggs III DUI and car accident
Former Las Vegas Raiders receiver Henry Ruggs III is likely to never play in the NFL again after his involvement in a car crash that killed another driver.
Ruggs was speeding and, according to prosecutors at his trial, was traveling at 157 miles per hour (nearly 250 km) just seconds before the crash. As the day went on, more shocking details came to light. Ruggs was twice over the legal limit and had a loaded gun in his car.
As NFL players faced the media, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who was Ruggs' teammate in Alabama from 2017 to 2019 was lost for words at what happened both to the 23-year-old woman who lost her life and to Ruggs.
“That’s tough,” Tua told reporters via totalprosports.com. “My heart goes out to the families affected by what happened, the choices and decisions.”
“My heart goes out to Henry, too, and his family. Obviously, it wasn’t the right choice or decision he made at that time. I know he’d wish he could have it back.”
“When I heard the news, that was tough for me to hear, just knowing the kind of person that Henry is, you never think that this guy could hurt a soul, when you kinda see something like that, you know, I’m still kind of in disbelief," Tagovailoa said.
Raiders WR Henry Ruggs III was involved in a car crash early Tuesday morning that killed one person.
He will be charged with DUI resulting in death. es.pn/3EHpXwe https://t.co/TV8kZP9Tvu
Ruggs was charged with a felony DUI resulting in death and felony reckless driving, per Fox News.com. If convicted, Ruggs faces between two and 20 years in prison, which effectively ends his NFL career.
Ruggs appeared in court on Wednesday and was seen wearing a neck brace. He was in a wheelchair as the hearing got underway.
As expected, the Raiders acted quickly and released the 22-year-old from the team as the fallout from his actions continued.
Tagovailoa was not the only quarterback to comment on the situation, with Ruggs' former teammate Derek Carr also sharing his thoughts on the incident, saying he'll be there for Ruggs:
Raiders QB Derek Carr said he’ll be there for now former teammate Henry Ruggs, if needed, following his fatal DUI crash. #vegas #raiders #raidernation 🎥 @raiders https://t.co/x9b2g5jtle