Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison is facing potentially different outcomes following his arrest on suspicion of DUI based on the details of the alleged offense.
A California Highway Patrol (CHP) West officer took Addison into custody on the night of Friday, July 12, after finding him asleep behind the wheel of a disabled vehicle that was blocking lanes on Interstate 105 outside of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
“After a DUI investigation was completed, the driver was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence,” the arresting officer wrote in the police report, of which Heavy obtained a copy via email on July 14 from CHP’s Southern Division.
However, there is no mention of blood alcohol content (BAC) in the report, which Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune noted during his Monday appearance on KFAN’s “The Paul Allen Show.” Because of that omission, Allen and Goessling speculated that Addison’s alleged offense could be marijuana-related, which might change the math on the punishment Addison will ultimately face from the NFL.
“The arrest report does not talk about BAC content,” Goessling said. “If it was an edible or something and not alcohol, that’s legal in California. So that may change all of the nature of this, too.”
While California state law allows recreational marijuana use, operating a vehicle under its influence remains illegal, according to the California Office of Traffic Safety. Whether the league office and/or the Vikings organization would consider a marijuana-related DUI arrest any differently than one that is alcohol-related remains unclear.
Goessling added that where alcohol is concerned, there is some punishment precedent, which involves a suspension.
“If it’s alcohol,” Goessling continued, “I think the precedent for that is three games, and the optics of it, obviously, are really bad at the moment.”
Vikings, Jordan Addison Will Both Come Out Losers if NFL Suspends Wide Receiver to Open Season
A three-game suspension will unquestionably hurt Minnesota in the early portion of the season, when the Vikings face a brutal schedule that includes back-to-back home contests against the San Francisco 49ers and Houston Texans in Weeks 2 and 3, respectively. Both teams won playoff games last year, and the Niners finished their season with a Super Bowl defeat at the hands of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Addison hauled in 70 receptions for 911 receiving yards and 10 TDs during his rookie campaign and was the team’s No. 2 wide receiver alongside superstar Justin Jefferson.
That sort of punishment will also hurt Addison’s reputation and his pocketbook. Addison signed a four-year, $13.7 million contract with Minnesota after the team drafted him No. 23 overall in 2023. His salary cap hit is $3.2 million during the upcoming season, though that figure factors in both a $375,000 roster bonus and a pro-rated signing bonus tally of nearly $1.75 million.
Thus, Addison’s base salary in 2024 is just under $1 million ($999,170). Each of his game checks across the 17-week regular season is just shy of $59,000. He would lose three of those checks via the suspension Goessling identified as the historical precedent for a DUI offense, which means Addison would lose just over $176,000 total.
Jordan Addison May Face Harsher Punishment Due to History of Traffic Citations Since Joining Vikings
The Vikings issued a statement on Addison’s situation following the news of his arrest breaking on Sunday night.
“We are aware of Jordan Addison’s arrest this past Friday and are currently gathering more information regarding the incident,” the team said, per ESPN.
Both Minnesota and the league are likely to look less favorably upon Addison’s behavior than they already would have considering his history of traffic illegalities since joining the team.
Minnesota State Police cited Addison for operating a vehicle at 140 mph in a zone with a 55-mph speed limit in July 2023, according to a report from The Associated Press (AP). Addison attempted to excuse the offense by telling the officer who pulled him over that his choice to drive at such a high speed was because of an emergency related to his dog, the AP reported.
Addison plead guilty to a charge of misdemeanor speeding and paid $686 in fines and fees, per Pro Football Talk.
