PHILADELPHIA _ In explaining how he made a "terrible decision" on Tuesday when a 9mm handgun and the smell of marijuana were discovered during a traffic violation on the Walt Whitman Bridge, Eagles receiver Josh Huff offered his reason for carrying a firearm and six hollow-point bullets in his car.
"I'm a professional athlete. What professional athlete don't have a gun?" Huff said by his locker. "I have a wife and I have a son at home, and my job is to protect them at all costs. My job is to protect myself as well."
The Eagles are not immediately levying any consequences. Huff practiced with the Eagles on Wednesday and will play on Sunday against the New York Giants, coach Doug Pederson said. The Eagles are letting the legal process take its course. Huff apologized to owner Jeffrey Lurie, Pederson, and his teammates.
Huff said he knows his actions have consequences, and he will accept whatever comes his way. That could include discipline from the NFL in addition to any punishment from New Jersey. The state has strict gun laws. Huff said he was aware of those laws, but not enough. His gun permit is in Texas, his home state.
"I felt my life has been threatened, and that's why I have a gun and I have a license," Huff said.
Huff was at the team facility on Tuesday morning, but indicated that the incident did not occur directly after he left. Huff said he did not have the gun at the facility.
"I'm not Gilbert Arenas, bro," Huff said, referencing the former NBA player. "I'm not going to bring a gun on the premises. I'm not going to bring a gun and put my teammates in jeopardy or anything. That's not me. It's solely for protection."
Huff, a Houston native, said "there's always somebody out to get you" in his hometown, which is why he's conditioned to carrying a gun. He said there have been several incidents in which he has lost friends to gun violence when they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The whole incident for Huff resulted from a traffic stop. So why was he speeding across the Walt Whitman Bridge in the first place?
"I'm getting on home to my wife," Huff said, "just like anyone would get home to their pregnant wife."
