The rocky start to Jashon Cornell’s NFL career hit another bump on Thursday when the NFL announced the second-year defensive tackle has been suspended three games for violation of the league’s substance-abuse program.
The suspension stems from a March misdemeanor conviction in his home state of Minnesota for fourth-degree driving while impaired, stemming from an incident on July 23, 2020. He was given two years of probation.
Cornell immediately took to social media to accept blame and apologize for his lapse in judgment.
“Last year after losing a dear friend of mine I made a mistake that was out of my character,” Cornell wrote. “I have owned it and worked on learning from it. Since then I have grown as a person and (am) now a better man. With that being said I apologize to the Lions organization and the fans. I have learned from my mishap.”
A seventh-round pick out of Ohio State, Cornell missed his entire rookie season after tearing his Achilles in training camp. Back at full strength, he has been participating in the team’s recent organized team activities.
Even ahead of Thursday’s news, the path to a roster spot for Cornell appeared to be an uphill battle. In addition to trading for veteran Michael Brockers this offseason, the Lions also selected two defensive linemen in the early round of this year’s NFL Draft in Levi Onwuzurike (second round) and Alim McNeill (third round).
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers