Denver Broncos rookie safety Ryan Murphy will miss Super Bowl 50 after being sent home by the team after he was questioned by police as part of a prostitution sting.
The San Jose Mercury News reported a sting involving Murphy’s brother led to the pair being questioned at a motel in San Jose.
Sources told KPIX-TV that police detained a suspected prostitute near the motel in north San Jose. She told the police she needed to go to a car to retrieve some property. Murphy and his brother were waiting in the car.
His brother was one of ten men cited for solicitation.
Murphy still remains on the Broncos practice squad, but Broncos coach Gary Kubiak said in a statement it was best for the team to send him home.
Statement from Denver Broncos HC Gary Kubiak: pic.twitter.com/tVToEUxnYu
— Patrick Smyth (@psmyth12) February 3, 2016
“Although practice squad safety Ryan Murphy was not cited by police, we decided it was best for the team if we continued our preparations for Super Bowl 50 without him,” Broncos coach Gary Kubiak. “Ryan is returning to Denver but his status as a practice squad player has not changed at this time.”
Kubiak opted to not keep around a potential distraction, and it’s hard to blame him with his squad gearing up for the biggest game of the season. It recalls the infamous incident involving Atlanta Falcons player Eugene Robinson, who solicited a prostitute the night before Super Bowl XXXIII.
As ESPN notes, the news comes just a week after Kubiak declared he trusted his group with off-field issues, praising the Broncos players for their accountability. Murphy seems to have broken that trust. Thankfully for Denver, Murphy is just a practice squad player, so not having him around shouldn’t affect their chances in the Superbowl at all.
[ESPN]
