New England Patriots safety Patrick Chung has waived a court appearance in New Hampshire for a cocaine possession charge according to Sports Illustrated. He also had his lawyer enter a not guilty plea on his behalf.
On Aug. 8, Chung was indicted with a felony cocaine possession which was first reported by the Laconia Daily Sun. The three-time Super Bowl champion was among many people who were indicted on drug charges.
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“We are aware of the reports regarding Patrick Chung,” the Patriots said in a statement last Thursday. “We will not be commenting while his judicial proceedings take place.”
Earlier this year, Chung signed a three-year contract extension which was worth over $12 million. Here’s a look at what 247Sports had to say about Chung.
Chung has spent the bulk of his career with the Patriots outside of one season with the Eagles in 2013. He was drafted by New England in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft out of Oregon and has been a key figure in the Patriots’ secondary, particularly in his second stint with the club.
Last regular season, Chung was able to total 84 tackles to go along with three passes defended and an interception. Along with his production on the field, Chung has also grown into one of the key leaders with the Patriots, which Bill Belichick noted back in January.
“Well, we have a lot of players on our team, and Pat’s certainly in that group, that give us great leadership that aren’t necessarily captains,” Patriots head coach Belichick said of Chung earlier this year. “Pat’s done that for years. This year, he was selected as a captain and very deserving. He’s done a great job. But, he’s given us great leadership year-in and year-out for a number of years. So, his experience, his confidence, certainly his versatility – he works with everybody, so he works with the corners, the safeties, the linebackers.
“He even gets involved with the defensive linemen because of his proximity to the line of scrimmage on a lot of plays. He’s involved in the kicking game. Really, he’s played in every phase of the kicking game for us – punt, punt return, kickoff, kickoff return. He’s a very dependable player. So, works hard in practice, runs scout team plays, things like that.”
Chung’s court date is scheduled for Nov. 8.
