The Jacksonville Jaguars and Philadelphia Eagles are in London getting ready to play the league's third international game of the season. But the Jaguars may find themselves shorthanded because of a reported incident on Friday night.
According to The Sun, four Jaguars players in their 20s were arrested at 4 a.m. local time Saturday morning after allegedly trying to leave the London Reign Showclub without paying their bill, which was said to be in the range of £50,000. The players were reportedly stopped by security after trying to leave and things apparently became physical. The players were released after nine hours in custody, and the club dropped their complaint after the bill was settled, according to the report.
CBS Sports NFL insider Jason La Canfora reports that the four players involved were all members of the secondary, including starting safety Barry Church.
The four Jaguars players arrested for an incident in London were - Barry Church, DJ Hayden, Jarrod Wilson and Ronnie Harrison. The team has released a statement saying they will handle the matter internally
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) October 28, 2018
The Jaguars addressed the situation at around 9:30 p.m ET on Saturday, saying that "any discipline will be handled internally" without confirming any details of the report other than four players being detained over an unpaid bill.
Just got statement from @Jaguars on incident here in London @ActionNewsJax @ActionSportsJax “We are aware that 4 of our players were detained over restitution of a bill. The matter is being resolved and the players are with the team. Any discipline will be handled internally.”
— Brent Martineau (@BrentASJax) October 28, 2018
It's unclear if the players involved will be disciplined on gameday. The Jaguars come into their annual trip to London having lost three straight games by an aggregate score of 90-28. Things got so bad in last week's loss to the Texans that Blake Bortles was benched during the second half, and players reportedly got into a heated argument in the locker room following the game. Bortles has been announced as the starter for Sunday's game, though he could be on a short leash if he continues to struggle.
The Eagles aren't coming into the game on a hot streak either, having dropped three of their last four games, including a 21-17 loss that involved surrendering a 17-0 fourth-quarter lead.
