Running back Derrius Guice was drafted with the 59th overall pick on Friday night, ending an extended wait for a player who some projected to go in the first round this year.
Guice’s slide was ended by the Redskins shortly after an NFL Network report about poor meetings with teams during the pre-draft process along with a “potentially highly embarrassing” investigation into another unnamed issue. There was also a report about an altercation during Guice’s visit with the Eagles that Redskins coach Jay Gruden said the team knew nothing about.
Guice denied any issue, saying the visit was “great” and that he got along well with Eagles running backs coach Duce Staley. He said the negative reports came as a shock to him.
“It did surprise me because a lot of the things came out of nowhere and weren’t true,” Guice said, via ESPN.com. “I just didn’t understand why me, out of all people, because I’m great to everybody, I have a great personality and I just didn’t understand why everything just hit so hard with me out of everybody.”
Lions General Manager Bob Quinn, who took running back Kerryon Johnson with Guice available said there were “some things that we were a little concerned about” regarding the former LSU back without delving into details.
Guice made waves during the pre-draft process when he claimed he was asked inappropriate questions during combine interviews, but a league investigation “did not confirm that any club made the reported inquiries” after interviews with Guice and others. Whatever the reasons, Guice now has his chance to show that any of the concerns leading into the draft won’t stop him from being a productive NFL player.
