The NFL on Thursday denied a request by LSU offensive lineman La’el Collins to be removed from draft consideration and allowed to enter the supplemental draft in the summer.
With NFL teams leery of drafting Collins amid a murder investigation in Louisiana, the player’s agents had petitioned the NFL to let him out of the draft while police complete the investigation, according to reports Thursday by Jay Glazer of FOX Sports and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
Police have said Collins is not a suspect in the shooting death of a pregnant woman believed to be his former girlfriend, but NFL teams are seeking a full police report before they consider drafting the senior lineman, Glazer reported.
After Collins’ agents petitioned to get his draft eligibility postponed until the summer, the league rejected the request, according to Rapoport and ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Collins, a possible first-round pick, was at an NFL event in Chicago on Wednesday morning but declined to answer questions from reporters. He then returned to Baton Rouge, La., in the hope of speaking with authorities and clearing his name.
But, because the investigation is not complete, the police are not ready to meet with him, according to NFL Media sources who have spoken to the police.
Police agreed to schedule an interview with Collins after the draft. Cpl. Don Coppola of the Baton Rogue Police Department told NFL Media’s Albert Breer on Thursday that no date or time has been set.
Police are trying to get more information about the death of 29-year-old Brittney Mills, who was shot and killed last Friday night in Baton Rouge. She was found in her apartment and rushed to the hospital, where her infant was delivered. The child survived and remains under medical care.
According to ESPN, police believe Mills is the former girlfriend of Collins and are trying to determine who killed her and whether Collins is the father of the baby.
“He’s not a suspect, but we are seeking to question him,” Coppola told NFL Media on Tuesday. “He knew the victim. We’re not sure of the exact nature of the relationship. But for the investigation and through the investigation, we’re exhausting all avenues to locate this young lady’s killer.”
Collins’ attorney, Jim Boren, said Tuesday he is taking the police investigation seriously, has provided information to the police and has hired a private investigator.
“We have identified where La’el was the day the lady was murdered to establish he was nowhere around,” Boren told ESPN. “We have offered to give names, witnesses who can vouch for his whereabouts that day until after the woman’s body was discovered. We believe that when (police) have verified that information they will rule him out as a suspect in the homicide, just as I believe he should be.”
Collins, a 6-foot-4, 305-pound Baton Rouge native, was one of 28 players who accepted the NFL’s invitation to attend the draft in Chicago. NFLDraftScout.com rates Collins as the No. 18 prospect in the draft.