Just minutes before the 2016 NFL Draft kicked off, a video of Ole Miss left tackle Laremy Tunsil surfaced that shows him smoking out of a bong in a gas mask. Needless to say, teams did not respond well to this, and Tunsil tumbled from a potential top-three draft pick all the way down to the Miami Dolphins at No. 13. Both the Dolphins and Tunsil confirmed that it was indeed him in the video, though it was taken two years ago while he was still in college.
The fall cost Tunsil an estimated $7 to $10 million in initial contract earnings. However, the video will not be held against the rookie as he enters the NFL.
Tunsil will not be required to begin his NFL career under Stage 1 of the league's substance abuse policy. The league will, however, closely monitor Tunsil and quickly intervene if they feel he is headed down the wrong path.
"I do not have a drug problem," Tunsel told the Miami media after being drafted. "You can check my college tests. I never failed one."
In the collective bargaining agreement there is a behavior clause that would make it easy for the league to put Tunsil in Stage 1 of its program. The clause reads: "Behavior [including but not limited to an arrest or conduct related to an alleged misuse of substances of abuse occurring up to two football seasons prior to the player's applicable scouting combine] which, in the judgment of the medical director, exhibits physical, behavioral, or psychological signs or symptoms of misuse of substances of abuse."
Brian McCarthy, the NFL's vice president of communications, would not comment either way on Tunsil's eligibility for the program.
"We cannot comment on the status of any player due to the confidential nature of the NFL-NFLPA substance of abuse program," he said.
The Dolphins did their due diligence on Tunsil, who was considered the No. 2 player on the team's draft board. The deep dive into his background was enough to convince owner Stephen Ross that he was worth the pick.
"I think a lot of work is done for months and months, and one [thing] two hours before the draft is totally somebody out to get a guy," Ross said. "It's not a question of this guy changed overnight. That work we've done on him, the people we've talked to and even subsequently talking to, we're going to continue that.
"Meeting the kid, you know that this is a good kid. It's going to be a great choice."
