Kareem Hunt appears to have narrowly escaped yet more trouble after an incident over the weekend at a Cleveland nightclub. The Browns running back talked to police after a “small argument” with a friend that attracted a lot of police attention.
No charges were filed. In fact, Hunt left on his own with no report filed, no handcuffs, no issues. Cleveland police went on the record stating
The report from TMZ:
Here’s what we know so far … the Cleveland Browns running back went to the Barley House party spot on Saturday night with a bunch of friends and stayed late into the evening.
Right after he left, SOMETHING happened — and several cops went over to speak with the 23-year-old. He wasn’t arrested. Wasn’t detained. He left without incident.
But, a witness tells TMZ Sports … Hunt was involved in a physical altercation with another man before the cops came over. The witness wasn’t sure if it was a “real” fight or if he was just horsing around with a buddy.
At one point, one of the officers can be heard on video telling Kareem, “I saw him push you.”
Barley House owner Bobby George told WKYC3 that Hunt was involved in a “small argument with one of his friends … People blew it out of proportion.”
The concluding statement there is worth focusing on for a minute. It was an argument between friends blown out of proportion. Go to any bar in any city and you’ll see that happen frequently. Rarely do police get involved, but rarely do those myriad incidents involve an NFL player with a spotlight on him for prior bad behavior.
Per ESPN’s Josina Anderson, the Browns are also of the belief it was blown up out of proportion,
Two sources with the Browns told ESPN’s Josina Anderson that the team was not concerned at this time, saying based on what they had read, it didn’t seem like a big deal, especially because Hunt was not arrested.
Hunt is on zero tolerance with the Browns for any malfeasance. He’s already suspended the first eight games from the domestic assault case in a Cleveland hotel, the one that led the Kansas City Chiefs to dump the 2017 NFL rushing champ. Browns GM John Dorsey has reiterated the short leash on Hunt’s tenure in the Dawg Pound.
It appears this latest incident will not be an issue for Hunt. Good. Now it’s on Hunt himself to learn from the close call. He must be more aware that trouble might find him, and trouble is a lot more likely at a bar in the late night. For a man who has admitted he’s seeking treatment for alcohol abuse, being in that situation is a poor choice.
Hunt has too much to lose by tempting chance. Maybe this latest close shave with the death of his NFL career will make him more aware of that fact.
