Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay was arrested on Wednesday, but reportedly will still play in Sunday’s divisional playoff game against the Bills.
Gay was charged with a misdemeanor charge of criminal property damage after allegedly getting into an argument with his child’s mother. The police report estimated the damages at around $225, and alleged Gay broke a vacuum cleaner, cellphone screen protector and humidifier, along with a wall and door.
While the charges aren’t considered too serious, the timing of such an arrest is obviously not great given the Chiefs are in the postseason and Gay is a key contributor on defense.
After hearing Gay out, Andy Reid has decided that he will be available to play in Sunday’s game.
“Andy Reid said Willie Gay will play against the Bills on Sunday. He returned to practice today,” ESPN’s Chiefs reporter Adam Teicher said.
Chiefs: Will Willie Gay play vs Bills?
Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo would not commit to Gay playing as of Thursday afternoon.
“I’m going to leave that up to Andy. I’m sure he’ll address it,” Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said. “But if this happened in a game and it was an injury, we’d just operate that way. But we’ll see what happens.”
The easy answer here is yes, as Reid commented on the incident — giving as much information as he felt comfortable with — on Friday afternoon.
“I decided that after just hearing some of the information there,” Reid said, per Nate Taylor The Athletic.
Gay has previously spoken out about his struggles with mental health. It’s unknown if this situation is directly correlated.
“All I can say about Willie is I love working with him,” Spagnuolo said. “He’s been terrific. I think you know he’s had a baby; I talk to him about that a lot. I just hope it works out best for everybody.”
Opening kickoff between the Bills and Chiefs is 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday.