Gareon Conley watched his draft stock fall after allegations of sexual assault against him made the news earlier this week prior to the NFL Draft. Once a probable top-15 pick, analysts wondered if the highly skilled cornerback would even be drafted in the first round.
Then the issue got partially cleared up when Conley passed a lie detector test after an interested team asked him to submit to a polygraph, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Ravens administered the test but still passed on Conley with the 16th pick.
No matter where Conley got drafted on Thursday, there were going to be tons of big reactions. Here’s what people had to say on Twitter when he went 24th overall to the Raiders:
If Conley is innocent, I get it. And maybe he is cleared soon. But there is some risk. More risk than a bum shoulder. #Raiders
— Bill Williamson (@BWilliamsonNFL) April 28, 2017
Oakland general manager Reggie McKenzie told media the Raiders did their research before drafting Conley, so it’s pretty clear the lie detector test played a role in the cornerback sneaking back into the first round.
#Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie said they've done the research and our confident they can trust Gareon Conley. pic.twitter.com/6ZZD518UHA
— Jimmy Durkin (@Jimmy_Durkin) April 28, 2017
However, just because Conley passed a polygraph test, doesn’t mean this issue will necessarily go away immediately. It remains to be seen if the accuser will press charges.