Laremy Tunsil’s draft-day experience got off to a rocky start when his Twitter account posted an alleged old video of him taking a gas mask bong hit. As a result of the social media faux pas, he tumbled all the way down from the top five, where he should have been drafted, to No. 13 overall to the Miami Dolphins.
Concluding that Tunsil could use a little assistance to remain on the straight and narrow in South Beach, former Jacksonville Jaguars running back Fred Taylor has offered to mentor Tunsil, according to TMZ Sports.
After the video leaked throughout social media during the early portion of Thursday’s draft, Tunsil slid down the draft board. The Baltimore Ravens reportedly took him off their radar when they selected Notre Dame’s Ronnie Stanley.
Though realizing what a steal Tunsil was at No. 13, the Dolphins swooped in and took advantage.
LAREMY TUNSIL SMOKING OFF A GAS MASK pic.twitter.com/3hnGA9tK3r
— K (@ImNotLit) April 28, 2016
Taylor, who lives only 10 minutes away from the Miami Dolphins facility, expressed interest in helping the young man make better decisions going forward.
“I wouldn’t mind trying to keep him on the right path,” Taylor said, per TMZ.
Taylor acknowledged that the environment of South Beach could be difficult for young players. He also joked about not being sure if there are shops that sell gas masks around the area.
At least Tunsil’s baggage was exposed quickly, giving him no other choice than to address the awkward questions about the gas mask incident right off the bat. Apparently, the Dolphins were willing to set Tunsil’s little video-recorded blunder from a handful of years ago aside in order to take the best player at the position.
It should be interesting to see if Tunsil responds to Taylor’s offer to keep him on track.