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Rumors: Derrius Guice’s draft stock could fall after giving different accounts of Combine questions

By Jacob Camenker

BATON ROUGE, LA - NOVEMBER 25: Derrius Guice #5 of the LSU Tigers reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second half of a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU won the game 45 - 21. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
BATON ROUGE, LA - NOVEMBER 25: Derrius Guice #5 of the LSU Tigers reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second half of a game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Tiger Stadium on November 25, 2017 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU won the game 45 - 21. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
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In the lead up to the 2018 NFL Draft, one of the top running back prospects finds himself in the cross-hairs of a minor issue. That would be LSU’s Derrius Guice.

For most of the 2018 NFL Draft process, there has been some buzz about Derrius Guice being a potential first-round pick. The LSU product is considered to be one of the top three running backs in this class, and many believed that he would be a Thursday night pick. However, it’s looking like his stock is slipping a bit after an issue that came up during draft week.

In a recent interview, Guice claimed that he had been asked questions about his sexuality and about whether or not his mother was a prostitute. These types of questions are not permitted, and investigations have been delved into before by the league on this matter. So, naturally they looked into Guice’s matter and interviewed him on a few different occasions about what had happened. And this is where the story gets a bit strange.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the NFL investigation found that no clubs had actually asked Guice the questions. And this was the confirmation, via a statement by Brian McCarthy of the NFL.

And per USA Today Sports’ A.J. Perez, Guice gave different accounts to each interviewer he spoke to during the NFL investigation.

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"There were at least three such interviews and Guice gave a different account in each, a person with knowledge of the investigation told USA TODAY Sports on Wednesday. The person requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the inquiry.Guice never admitted he made up the allegations, although the NFL released its findings Wednesday, stating its investigation could not find evidence such questions were asked."

This certainly is an odd situation, and it’s one that frankly can’t be explained. It appears that either Guice is making this up, or the NFL is doing a great job at hiding that these questions were asked. But, if it is indeed the former, it just begs the question: Why? Guice had little to gain from making up this story, so it seems odd that he would do so. But, that’s what the NFL investigation points to.

Regardless of the facts of this story, it appears that this could hurt Guice’s draft stock a bit, as Perez pointed out. There were already minor concerns about his maturity, and this story could demonstrate a bit of that. It won’t have a massive effect on him, but it could do enough to keep him out of Round 1. As it stands, he probably won’t make it past the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at No. 38, unless this incident changes their mind about him.

Next: Redskins options for their first round pick

In the event that Guice starts to slide, the Washington Redskins should keep an eye on him. The team has interest in him, and they could trade up to get him if he’s available at the beginning of Round 2. This story bears watching and if Guice’s draft stock actually is affected, the Redskins could capitalize on an opportunity to land the talented, young running back. But for now, it’s unclear how much, if at all, Guice’s stock will be affected.

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