Josh Sills is a Philadelphia Eagle once again.
The 25-year old offensive lineman, who played for West Virginia and Oklahoma State before being signed by the Eagles in April 2022 as an undrafted free agent, was arrested just before the Eagles took on the Kansas City Chiefs in this years’ Super Bowl on charges of rape and kidnapping.
The charges stemmed from an incident that prosecutors alleged occurred on December 5th, 2019, in Guernsey County, Ohio.
According to the New York Post, a police report stated that Sills allegedly forced a woman to perform oral sex on him for “approximately 20 minutes” in his truck, causing the woman to sustain bruises in the back of her throat, lips, mouth, ear and on the back of her leg.
The report also stated that Sills had given her and her cousin a ride home, and that he had known her since childhood. The two also attended high school together.
She told the police that Sills grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back in as her cousin exited the vehicle.
Sills allegedly attempted to kiss her, and then threw her down on the seat and tried to unbutton her pants. When she told him to stop, over and over, he then grabbed her by the neck, and pulled her on top of him, and said:
“She was doing this and was not leaving until she did this.”
Sills then made her perform oral sex.
The woman then asked him if she could leave, and he allegedly threatened her, saying:
“You will talk to me again.”
Disturbing allegations, for sure. But Sills had his day in court this week, and after a five-day trial and three hours of deliberations, a jury found Sills not guilty of both charges.
After the verdict, Sills expressed his relief at being exonerated:
“I have done nothing wrong, and I am glad that was proven today.”
The NFL had placed Sills on the Commissioner’s Exempt List, which prevented him from participating in practices, games or travel with the Eagles, despite remaining on their roster. But after the acquittal, the league issued a statement confirming that Sills is once again eligible to rejoin his team:
“We have notified the Eagles that Sills has been removed from the commissioner’s exempt list and is eligible to join the club. His status will be included in tomorrow’s league’s personnel notice.”
And the Eagles confirmed that Sills would be returning to the team:
“We are aware that the legal matter involving Josh Sills has been adjudicated and he was found not guilty. The organization has monitored the situation. The NFL has removed him from the Commissioner’s Exempt List and he will return to the team’s active roster.”
His attorney said that Sills is looking forward to moving on with his life and his football career now that he’s been acquitted:
“He’ll be able to build his football career and grow as a person and be successful in all of the things that he chooses to do. It’s unfortunate he was accused of this. It cost him a Super Bowl appearance. He will move on and live his life in a very honorable fashion.”
Sills appeared in one game during his rookie season, but now has a chance to begin his football career once again.
