FAYETTEVILLE — Former Arkansas quarterback Matt Jones’ NFL career lurched into jeopardy after he was arrested early Thursday and charged with felony possession of cocaine.

Three Fayetteville Police Department officers on foot patrol arrested Jones, a receiver in his fourth year with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and two other men in an unlit parking lot behind 313 W. Dickson St., at 12: 41 a. m. Thursday. According to a police report, evidence obtained at the scene included six grams of a substance that field-tested positive for cocaine, a Footlocker card with suspected cocaine residue, two print cards with suspected cocaine, a glass jar suspected of containing marijuana residue and a small plastic straw with suspected cocaine residue.

Jones, 25, was arrested along with former Arkansas tight end Jared Hicks, 25, and Benjamin Cook, 26. Hicks and Cook were charged with misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia.

Jones, a record-setting quarterback with the Razorbacks from 2001-2004, was booked into Washington County Detention Center at 4: 11 a. m. and was released at approximately 1: 30 p. m. after posting $ 2, 500 bond. Jones, who was taken by the Jaguars with the 21 st pick in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft, has an Aug. 11 arraignment on the drug possession charges and instant referral to the NFL’s substance abuse program.

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“Professionally, the first thing that came to mind was that cocaine still has a different sting than marijuana,” said Chris Mortensen, an ESPN analyst who has known Jones since the summer before Jones’ senior season at Arkansas.

“I was just so saddened, so surprised. I couldn’t believe it,” said Houston Nutt, Jones’ former coach at Arkansas who is now at Ole Miss. “I don’t think we ever had an off-the-field problem with Matt. He has a lot of good inside of him, so this is really a shock.”

Jaguars officials were aware of the report.

“We’re trying to investigate that now,” Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver said. “We don’t have all the facts. We will comment on that once we have all the facts.”

Jones could not be reached for comment. His father, Steve Jones, issued a statement to KNWA-TV in Fayetteville that read, in part: “Matt is anxious to make a statement and wants to make a statement. His attorney has advised him to not say anything until they have had a chance to speak together. They will release a statement at the appropriate time.

“ We want to make it clear that Matt was not in possession of any drugs, but that there were drugs in the vehicle and were located in the closest proximity to Matt. He does not claim any responsibility for the drugs.”

According to the police report, Jones was in the back seat of a Toyota 4 Runner with Oklahoma plates when an officer approached and spotted him with “a white card with [a ] white powdery substance and in his hand was a credit card that he was using to chop up and scrape the powder.”

The arrest report stated that one officer drew his weapon “keeping it at the low and ready” when Jones initially failed to comply to an order to put his hands where they could be seen.

After posting bond, Jones was hustled out a side door of the Washington County Jail and into his father’s Dodge Dually 3500, which was parked in a space reserved for police.

Detention Captain Randy Osburn said Jones was allowed to exit through a door typically used to keep people away from each other, such as angry families. Osburn said Jones’ father asked that his son be allowed to exit through the door so Matt Jones wouldn’t have to pass by reporters and cameramen.

“I can’t lie and say he didn’t [receive preferential treatment ],” Osburn said. “I would like to. To be honest, we screwed up.”

Osburn said he was not consulted before the decision was made to allow Jones to exit in a manner that prevented media contact.

Cook, of Tulsa, and Hicks, of Fayetteville, posted $ 500 bond and face arraignment Aug. 8. Hicks was arrested and charged with public intoxication in May 2005 in West Fork. He pled no contest and was fined $ 200.

Jones’ tenure with the Jaguars has been on shaky ground for at least the past season. Jacksonville Coach Jack Del Rio made him inactive for three games last season, based largely on assistant coaches’ complaints about Jones’ attitude.

“Will they flat-out release him, because he was on the bubble going into camp to begin with ?” Mortensen said.

The Jaguars open training camp July 25 and finish up Aug. 6.

Jones, who played high school football and basketball at Van Buren and Fort Smith Northside, signed a five-year, $ 8. 45 million contract after a three-day holdout during his rookie season. He mostly has not lived up to first-round expectations after starring as an athletic quarterback for four seasons with the Razorbacks.

He caught 77 passes for 1, 075 yards and 9 touchdowns in his first two NFL seasons combined, then fell off to 24 receptions for 317 yards and 4 touchdowns last season. Jones caught scoring passes in three of the final four games in 2007.

Jones is the SEC record holder for rushing yards by a quarterback with 2, 535 yards. He owns the Arkansas record with 8, 392 yards total offense, and 77 touchdowns accounted for, which includes 23 rushing scores.

“Everybody who knows Matt knows he’s a good person,” said Rodger Hunter, Arkansas’ director of student life and a self-admitted former cocaine addict. “This could be the best time to help him get back on the right track. Sometimes things of this nature have to happen, you have to hit a brick wall, to see that you’re not invincible....

“ This is negative, but it doesn’t have to end his career. He’s 25 and he has a lot of football in him.”

According to the NFL’s substance abuse policy, there is no automatic suspension after an arrest for drug possession unless it is a third violation. It is not known whether Jones has any prior violations of the NFL’s drug policies because that information isn’t released publicly.

Jones’ felony charge carries a possible sentence of three to 10 years in prison and / or a fine of up to $ 10, 000, but first-time, nonviolent offenders typically do not face that type of sentencing.
Adam Wallworth of the Democrat-Gazette and The Associated Press contributed information for this article .