Jets GM says Edwards will be active for team’s next game, but won’t start

Jets GM says Edwards will play despite arrest

NEW YORK — Jets star wide receiver Braylon Edwards will be active for New York’s next game Sunday night at Miami despite being arrested for drunken driving on Tuesday morning.

General manager Mike Tannenbaum told The Associated Press on Tuesday night that, after speaking with coach Rex Ryan and owner Woody Johnson, the team determined that Edwards won’t start, and how much he plays against the Dolphins will be up to Ryan.

“Braylon’s actions clearly come under the purview of the league’s substance abuse policy,” Tannenbaum said. “This is going to have to run its course through the legal system, and any discipline that occurs will be by the league under that program.”

Edwards was arraigned on drunken-driving charges after a breath test showed he had a blood-alcohol level twice the legal limit after he was stopped on Manhattan’s West Side around 5 a.m. Tuesday, prosecutors said.

The Jets had few options in terms of discipline due to the rules of the collective bargaining agreement. Any punishment they would dole out other than what the NFL eventually decides, would violate the CBA. That means the Jets could not deactivate him or keep him active and not play him without risking a violation.

Edwards will practice with the team this week as the Jets, coming off a huge victory over New England, prepare to play the undefeated rival Dolphins.

Edwards told a police officer he had been partying and drinking before being pulled over in his luxury SUV, but suggested letting him leave the car and go home, prosecutors said at his arraignment.

He was released without bail in a case that could compound his legal troubles while he’s on probation after a fracas in Cleveland last year. He declined to discuss the drunken-driving arrest as he left a Manhattan courthouse, thronged by reporters.

“There will be plenty of time to talk. I’ll address everybody,” said Edwards, wearing a black T-shirt and fashionably torn gray jeans.

Authorities said there were four other people in the SUV, and the Jets confirmed that starting left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson and defensive end Vernon Gholston were among them. Neither of those players was charged.

Tannenbaum said he and Ryan met with the two players, and based on their conversations, determined there was no punishment warranted.

Associated Press Writers Colleen Long and Jennifer Peltz contributed to this report.