TMZ Sports first reported that New Orleans Saints tight end Jimmy Graham was arrested Friday evening in Los Angeles on a couple of misdemeanor charges — suspicion of being under the influence of a controlled substance, as well as as resisted, delaying, and obstructing a police officer, though he was later released from police custody and the incident is under investigation. TMZ sources with the Los Angeles police department say Graham was seen “walking in the streets” and resisted arrest.
Now we have word from the team, with the Saints saying in a statement Saturday morning that their team doctor believes Graham suffered a seizure which led to his erratic behavior:
“New Orleans Saints tight end Jimmy Graham experienced a medical episode last evening, which resulted in him becoming disoriented. He was taken into custody by local authorities and transported to a local hospital for evaluation for what Dr. John Amoss believes to be a likely seizure and spent the night under medical supervision and testing. Amoss met Graham at the hospital and is overseeing his care at this time. he was released this morning and is with the team as they continue preparations for Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.”
We’ll watch out for updates on this front, but the most important thing is that Graham’s health has stabilized. Returning to football in humid New Orleans and Los Angeles after a year away from the game takes a toll on the body, and Graham has received frequent rest days throughout training camp to help him shoulder the workload. The 36-year-old doesn’t have a history of seizures so hopefully this was just a one-off for him.
