JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Leonard Fournette will not face any punishment from the Jacksonville Jaguars after his arrest last week for driving on a suspended license.
Coach Doug Marrone said he spoke with Fournette about the incident and that the arrest -- the latest trouble for the running back and 2017 fourth-overall pick -- isn't going to impact how they evaluate Fournette's offseason.
"It doesn't change it for me," Marrone said Tuesday. "I don't want to get into where I stand here and I'm trying to lessen anything, meaning that a law was broken. But at the same time, I don't want to get into, 'Oh my gosh, is that going to change my relationship?' or anything like that. We'll just see where we're at."
Marrone called the circumstances that led to Fournette's arrest -- failing to pay a speeding ticket from November -- a mistake. He also said he made a similar mistake when he was an assistant coach at Georgia Tech from 1996-99.
Marrone said he received a speeding ticket while on the road recruiting (he doesn't remember which state) and thought he had paid it. However, he found out he hadn't when he was stopped for speeding in 1997 in Daytona Beach Shores, Florida, while driving Georgia Tech coach George O'Leary around to visit high school coaches in the area.
"I give them my license. I give them my rental car agreement. And as soon as he came back and he said, 'You need to step out of the car,' I said, 'Damn,'" Marrone said. "I had no idea. Everything was racing through my mind. I made a mistake, so I had to get handcuffed, which is tough when you're my size."
Marrone was charged with driving on a suspended license and was released after O'Leary posted a $100 bond, per court records. He eventually paid a $163 fine, and learned a lesson he made sure he emphasized to Fournette.
"You want to make sure that you follow up on things and you follow through," Marrone said. "Now I'm, like, crazy about it."
Fournette was arrested last Thursday after a Jacksonville Sheriff's officer pulled over a 2016 GMC Yukon that he clocked at 65 mph in a 45 mph zone. Fournette was charged with knowingly driving with a suspended license, speeding, and improper window tint on the side and rear windows.
Fournette's license was suspended because he failed to pay a speeding ticket from Nov. 17, 2018. Per Duval County court records, Fournette paid that outstanding ticket ($227) the day after his arrest.
Defensive end Calais Campbell has the locker next to Fournette and said he spoke with the third-year player briefly about his situation when the offseason conditioning program began Monday.
"I won't put words in his mouth or anything like that, but it was a good conversation," Campbell said. "Nobody's worried about what's going to come from that. We're confident that that's going to pass over. He's going to be ready to go to work. He came in in great shape. He looks good and has a good attitude, so I'm looking forward to seeing his progression and what he does this year."
The Jaguars need Fournette to make the kind of impact he did as a rookie in 2017 (1,040 yards and nine TDs rushing) to complement the addition of quarterback Nick Foles in free agency. Fournette had a good start to the offseason, working out at the University of Wyoming with a former LSU strength coach to get away from distractions in his hometown of New Orleans.
Fournette reported to the team Monday for Phase One of the offseason conditioning program. The only two Jaguars players not in attendance are cornerback Jalen Ramsey and linebacker Telvin Smith.
Marrone said Tuesday afternoon that he had contacted each player but had yet to get a response.