Gareon Conley's rise might end up being nowhere near the same stratosphere as his fall.
The former Ohio State star cornerback's name popped up in a Cleveland Police report on Tuesday stemming from an alleged incident where a female accused him of rape in the bathroom of a Westin hotel suite on April 9. Conley denied the sexual assault claim and has not been arrested or charged but the police are in the process of setting up an interview with him regarding the night in question.
Despite previously accepting an invitation to attend the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft on Thursday night, Conley reportedly will stay home with the alleged incident still fresh on everyone's minds.
Conley worked himself into the discussion to be a first-round pick with terrific workouts first at the NFL Scouting Combine at the start of March and then Ohio State's Pro Day last month. But as history shows, such off-field problems this close to draft day could prove fatal to Conley's stock — and bank account.
Top prospects in years past that have dealt with issues in the week leading up to, or even night of the draft all saw their stocks plummet almost immediately. Some recovered and still made it in the NFL; all earned far less money.
Below are some notable players from recent memory.
2016: Laremy Tunsil, Ole Miss Offensive Tackle
Tunsil's time in Chicago quickly went from the best nights of his life to one of the most shocking and wild. Mere minutes before the Draft opened last April, someone posted a video of Tunsil smoking out of a gas mask. The former Ole Miss star left tackle was a projected top-5 selection but ultimately fell to No. 13 and the Miami Dolphins.
As the night progressed, things got worse. A few hours later, someone posted a photo of text messages between Tunsil and Ole Miss administrators where the player asked for money to help pay his rent and other bills. In a news conference after Miami selected him, Tunsil admitted to taking money from a coach, an NCAA violation, though he claimed his social media accounts were hacked.
Tunsil lost around $8 million draft night. Photo via Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports.
Ole Miss officials later verified that the texts between Tunsil and the administrators were real. Once considered the best tackle prospect in last year's draft, some teams took Tunsil off their board completely after seeing the gas mask video. The Baltimore Ravens selected Notre Dame's Ronnie Stanley sixth overall, while the Tennessee Titans picked Jack Conklin eighth.
Tunsil signed a four-year, $12.4 million contract with the Dolphins. Stanley inked a four-year, $20.4 million contract with the Ravens. So in all, Tunsil's wild night cost him roughly $8 million.
2016: Robert Nkemdiche, Ole Miss Defensive Lineman
Nkemdiche was widely considered a top NFL Draft pick after a stellar junior season. Character concerns began to creep in, however, after he fell from a fourth story window at the Grand Hyatt Atlanta in Buckhead on Dec. 12, 2015. The star defensive lineman was suspended for his team's Sugar Bowl matchup with Oklahoma State after being charged with marijuana possession when police found several weed cigarettes in his hotel room the night of the incident. Investigators also determined Nkemdiche was high when he fell out the window.
A force for Ole Miss, Nkemdiche's stock fell as he went through the NFL Draft process. With the cloud of the drug charge hanging over his head, he became a fringe first-round pick before eventually getting selected 29th overall by the Arizona Cardinals.
Once projected as a top-10 pick, Nkemdiche signed a four-year, $8.6 million dollar contract with his new team. To compare, the 10th overall pick last year, Ohio State's Eli Apple, signed a four-year, $15.1 million deal.
Nkemdiche barely played for the Cardinals as a rookie as he dealt with an ankle injury.
2015: La'el Collins, LSU Offensive Guard
Like Tunsil last year, Collins was a big-bodied and gifted offensive lineman that saw his stock as a surefire first-round pick tumble mightily near draft time. Unlike Tunsil, however, Collins couldn't recover; he went undrafted in 2015.
Two days before the draft opened, Baton Rouge police sought to question Collins regarding the shooting death of Brittany Mills, a former girlfriend of the LSU star who at the time was pregnant. Police didn't believe Collins was involved in the shooting but still wanted to talk with him as they continued their investigation.
Collins (71) now blocks for Dak Prescott as part of the NFL's best offensive line but is severely underpaid. Photo via Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports.
A paternity test revealed that Collins was not the father of Mills's baby but the fact he was named in a murder investigation scared away all 32 NFL teams on Draft weekend. Collins threatened to not play in the 2015 season if he wasn't drafted and wanted to instead enter the Supplemental Draft, only the NFL wouldn't let him. He signed as a free agent with the Dallas Cowboys a week after the draft and is now their starting left guard.
Collins is about to enter the final part of a three-year, $1.599 million deal he signed with the Cowboys. He is set to earn a $616,750 base salary in 2017. Laken Tomlinson, the highest drafted guard in 2015, is guaranteed $1.212 million with the Detroit Lions this season.
2013: Tyrann Mathieu, LSU Defensive Back
Mathieu's off-field issues were tracked throughout his college career, as he admitted to an addiction to marijuana. One of the most electric defensive players in all of college football, Mathieu was a 2011 Heisman Trophy finalist and won the Chuck Bednarik Award that season.
Les Miles kicked Mathieu off the team the following August, however, after more failed drug tests. Mathieu withdrew from LSU and attended a Houston drug rehabilitation facility, re-enrolled in classes for fall semester but then was collared again for possession of marijuana in October. He announced a month later he planned to enter the 2013 NFL Draft.
Despite being one of the best defensive back prospects in the draft, Mathieu waited until the third day to hear his name called. Arizona selected Mathieu 69th overall with an intention to play him at safety. Mathieu signed a four-year, $3 million contract as a third-round pick and has battled through ACL and LCL tears to become a franchise cornerstone.
With his drug issues behind him, Arizona awarded him with a five-year, $62 million contract last August. So Mathieu made his big-time money, it just took him some time.
2012: Vontaze Burfict, Arizona State Linebacker
Burfict is the poster child for potential first-round NFL Draft selection with too many "red flags." With great size and a knack for making the big hits while in college, many thought he could break into the first 32 picks of the 2012 NFL Draft.
Burfict's antics have been an issue throughout his whole career in Cincinnati. Photo via Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports.
Yet Burfict's on- and off-field antics kept him from becoming any of the 253 picks that weekend in New York City. Officials threw 16 personal foul flags toward Burfict in his final 26 college games as he struggled to maintain his anger issues. Burfict then told teams at the Scouting Combine that he smoked marijuana, failed a drug test in Indianapolis and performed poorly in the 40-yard dash, bench press and other workouts. Couple that with poor interviews and no team wanted him.
Except for the Cincinnati Bengals, who signed him to a three-year, $1.441 million contract as an undrafted free agent. Luke Kuechly, the top linebacker selected in the 2012 NFL Draft, signed a four-year, $12.6 million contract with the Carolina Panthers. Kuechly inked a $61.8 million extension ahead of the 2015 season, while Burfict is readying to play out the final year of a $19 million contract with the Bengals in 2017.
Burfict's hot head and continued issues with personal fouls have prevented him from making much more money than he has, both before and during his pro career.
Gareon Conley isn't the only prospect this year facing some sort of controversy before the 2017 NFL Draft opens on Thursday. Michigan's Jabrill Peppers tested positive for a diluted urine sample at the NFL Combine but the news did not break until earlier this week.
Additionally, Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster was sent home from the Combine after sparring with a medical professional as he waited in line to be tested. He also had some history of using drugs while playing for the Crimson Tide, something teams must vet before choosing to draft him.
Other prospects have baggage they must carry with them as they wait for the call that a professional football franchise wants them as part of their team. There are also others in years past that we did not mention above.
How Conley's situation affects his stock as a top athlete and cornerback won't be realized until Thursday night. He could go undrafted like La'el Collins did if teams feel they don't have enough time to gather information about the alleged incident, or just fall out of the first round.
All of that will be answered this weekend.
