Update: Chandler Jones Had a Bad Reaction to Synthetic Marijuana

Chandler Jones / Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Update (Thursday, 1:42 p.m.): Newly released documents from the Foxborough Police Department describe Chandler Jones as “desperately seeking assistance” when he showed up at the station early Sunday morning. The report says Jones, who was shirtless and wearing cotton blue sweatpants, ran through a parking lot before he got down on his knees and placed his hands behind the back of his head –– explained as a surrender-like position.

“Mr. Jones did not resist, nor was he ever argumentative or confrontational,’’ Officer David J. Foscaldo wrote, per the Boston Globe. “Mr. Jones was not armed, and he did not have any narcotics on either on his person or in his possession.”

Shortly after Jones was placed inside of an ambulance, he remembered he had forgotten his keys at his house. The officer who was dispatched to Jones’ residence found the keys on his kitchen counter and reported a “smell of burnt marijuana,” according to the documents. No actions against Jones were taken.

Update (Wednesday, 4:26 p.m.): Chris Gasper of the Boston Globe reports Jones had a bad reaction to synthetic marijuana before he walked to the Foxborough police station early Sunday morning to seek assistance. The Providence Journal‘s Mark Daniels tweeted Monday afternoon the NFL is aware of the situation and looking into it, though the league doesn’t list synthetic marijuana as one of its banned substances.

Gasper also says Rob Gronkowski wasn’t involved in the incident.

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Tuesday may go down as one of the more bizarre days at Gillette Stadium in recent memory: Bill Belichick showed up to his press conference sporting a black eye and Rob Gronkowski was curiously missing from practice. Then on Tuesday night, reports started circulating about Pro Bowl defensive end Chandler Jones getting rushed to Norwood hospital over the weekend for unknown reasons.

According to the Boston Herald, Jones showed up to the Foxborough police station at 7:42 a.m. Sunday with a medical emergency. Dispatch records show he was transported to nearby Norwood hospital shortly after 8:00 a.m. The Patriots released a statement Tuesday confirming Jones, who’s been present at all practices this week, was admitted into the hospital for a brief period of time.

Foxborough Police Chief Edward T. O’Leary originally denied to the Herald that Jones was at the station Sunday. But then when the Herald obtained dispatch records that say at least five officers were evaluating Jones in the station’s back parking lot while another officer was sent to his house to “secure the residence,” O’Leary said he viewed the situation as a “medical call” and not a “specific police call.” O’Leary serves as the head of security for stadium events at Gillette. (Comcast SportsNet New England’s Patriots reporter Tom E. Curran says O’Leary was uncooperative with him as well when he inquired about Jones Tuesday.)

Heavy.com also published audio recordings from the Foxborough Police and Fire Departments that describe Jones as a “confused party.” The officer who was at Jones’ residence can also be heard telling a dispatcher the Patriots lineman was “definitely involved with class D delta before this happened.” Massachusetts law characterizes marijuana as a “class D” substance along with other drugs.

This story took an even more peculiar twist when Dennis & Callahan producer Chris Curtis tweeted Tuesday evening police sources were telling Jones had overdosed on pills Saturday night. Curtis deleted a previous tweet that said Jones was at Rob Gronkowski’s house Saturday. For what it’s worth, Gronkowski was photographed boarding a JetBlue flight departing from Fort Myers, Fla. early Sunday afternoon.

On top of that, the original report about Jones’ hospital visit actually came from Holy Cross men’s basketball play-by-play announcer Brendan Glasheen, who relayed the news late Sunday morning to little fanfare.

Due to HIPAA protections and the fact that Jones wasn’t arrested, it’s unlikely any new information about this incident will be released by either the Foxborough police department or the Patriots. We’ll update if anything becomes available.