Henry Ruggs Training For NFL Comeback In Prison

Former Raiders WR Henry Ruggs has remained in prison after pleading guilty in his felony DUI case that resulted in the death of Las Vegas woman Tina Tintor in 2021. His former teammate, Packers RB Josh Jacobs, said on Ryan Clark‘s The Pivot Podcast that the receiver is training for a potential NFL comeback while incarcerated and a couple of teams “are willing to give him a chance.” 

“Keeping up with him and hearing him talk, it brings me spirits, because he’s always positive,” Jacobs said, via Mark Inabinett of AL.com. “He’s positive about everything. He’s training. They let him train and things like that, so I’m like, ‘When you come out, man, I don’t know if you will get a chance.’ I’ve been talking to some people for him. They’ve been saying a couple of teams are willing to give him a chance. I’m like, ‘When you get that chance, man, you better not ever — don’t look back, and prove to yourself and prove to everybody that one decision don’t define you and who you are as a man.’”

Jacobs stood behind Ruggs’ character, saying the incident is not a proper representation of him as a person.

“I instantly get mad. And then when I start finding out more about the story and about how they were supposed to be racing. I’m like, ‘Who was he with?’ But he was with his family. So I went to his house. I had some words with some people over there, and I’m just like, ‘Man, y’all got to understand, like, he the breadwinner of the family. He the one changing all of y’all’s lives — everybody.’ And then not only that, he’s a good kid. He’s never been in trouble. I’ve never seen him do nothing crazy. He was just one of them guys that have a very, very unfortunate situation and something happened, a decision that he made. That’s what hurt me the most. Man, he isn’t somebody you would look at and be like, ‘Bro, you deserved this to happen to you.’”

According to Nevada Department of Corrections records, Ruggs’ earliest parole-eligibility date is August 5, 2026, so there’s still some time to pass before he can make a comeback. 

Ruggs is serving a prison sentence of three to 10 years. He was allegedly traveling at 156 miles per hour when his car hit Tintor’s, who was stopped at a light. 

The state said Ruggs’ blood alcohol level was two times the Nevada legal limit. The Raiders released Ruggs almost instantly after the event. 

Ruggs, 24, was a two-year starter at Alabama. The Raiders used the No. 12 overall pick in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft to select him.

Ruggs signed a four-year, $16,671,626 contract that includes a $9,684,819 signing bonus. He was cut in the second year of the deal. 

In 2021, Ruggs appeared in seven games for the Raiders and caught 24 of 36 targets for 469 yards receiving and two touchdowns. He also rushed three times for 16 yards.