Amid multiple legal issues that have come to light, the Jets are standing by Marcus Maye.
The team’s injured safety and longest-tenured player recently approached Robert Saleh for a meeting, the head coach said Wednesday, after revelations emerged concerning Maye being arrested for DUI in Florida during the offseason for which he is facing charges related to a car accident.
“He recognizes he made a mistake,” Saleh said at practice.
It is possible Maye made multiple mistakes. The accident occurred in February, and though Saleh declined to reveal when he knew about the legal matter, he said he and Maye met about it this week.
There is a Zoom hearing schedule for Oct. 20, according to court filings, after Maye was charged with driving under the influence, DUI/damage to property and leaving the scene of an accident in Fort Lauderdale. He posted a $1,500 bond.
“From my understanding, he hasn’t had many issues as a young man, and this is something that he’ll get through,” said Saleh, who added that he only judges Maye for how he has acted since the two met. The coach called Maye an “outstanding teammate.”
There is at least one other issue Maye encountered, as online court records indicate he was issued a citation in April in Orlando for speeding and driving with a suspended license about six weeks after the DUI arrest. The citation, first reported by the Bergen (N.J.) Record, was dismissed in August.
The issues are adding up for a 28-year-old, who was expected to be both a leader and force on a young Jets defense, but who sprained his ankle in the loss to the Broncos on Sept. 26 and was expected to miss 3-4 weeks. He did not play in Sunday’s victory over the Titans.
His agent, Erik Burkhardt, had noted after the injury that Maye should be back by the Nov. 2 trade deadline, suggesting the safety would like to play for a team with a better chance of winning.
The legal issues that have surfaced will not help Maye’s standing with the Jets or his trade value. Maye, regarded as a solid if not elite safety, can be a free agent after the season and has only been a part of losing teams since the Jets selected him in the second round of the 2017 draft.
“It’s he without sin cast the first stone,” Saleh said of Maye, who also is facing a civil suit from the driver of the car he allegedly struck before the DUI arrest. “We’ve all made mistakes, and he recognizes the mistake he made.”