Lawyer: Hurd denies selling to players

CHICAGO -- The attorney for Sam Hurd said Friday that his client never sold drugs to other NFL players, hoping to put any rumors to rest as the wide receiver without a team prepares to fight federal drug charges.

Less than an hour after Hurd was cut by the Chicago Bears, defense attorney Brett Greenfield told reporters that his client plans to fight the charges and wants one thing made clear.

"Sam has asked me to address one point, with respect to the rumors that Sam has been supplying drugs to other members of the NFL, out of respect to the NFL, out of respect to teammates and out of respect to other players, he 100-percent denies that allegation," Greenfield said. "It is patently and totally false. It just didn't happen."

League spokesman Brian McCarthy said the NFL is closely monitoring the situation. Asked about a report that authorities have a list of NFL players with ties to the drug case, McCarthy said: "We are not aware of such a list."

U.S. Magistrate Young Kim ordered Hurd to surrender his passport and any firearms. Hurd is expected to be tried in Texas, where the criminal complaint was filed this week by the U.S. attorney. Hurd later was released on $100,000 bond.

Hurd, who appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit with his feet shackled, waived his right to a preliminary hearing, meaning the next step is for prosecutors to take their case before a grand jury.

Hurd was arrested Wednesday night outside a Chicago steakhouse, according to the complaint. Authorities say Hurd faces up to 40 years in prison and a $2-million fine if convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine, or half a kilogram.

Teammates said they are stunned by the allegations. Bears general manager Jerry Angelo said he is, too, as he announced that Hurd was being cut.

Hurd, 26, came to the Bears in July after five years with the Cowboys. The Bears announced a $5.15-million contract agreement with Hurd on July 29, one day after federal authorities say he had agreed to a "consensual interview" with Homeland Security investigators regarding $88,000 in cash that had been seized in a car he owned in the Dallas area. The money was inside a canvas bag that authorities said was covered in a plantlike material that tested positive for "properties of marijuana."

"There were no facts, there were no flags, that anybody could present tangibly to say we should have known otherwise, and I want to make that perfectly clear to the public, to our fans," Angelo said Friday. "We do our homework. We do our due diligence. We did everything you could possibly do given the information that we can allocate." -- AP