Former NFL WR released from federal prison after serving 10 years

Former NFL receiver Sam Hurd was released from federal prison after serving time for drug trafficking charges.

Hurd received a 15-year sentence in 2013. According to the San Antonio Express-News, Hurd was scheduled to be released May 30. He was released early and has received community confinement in the San Antonio area.

In 2011, Hurd was arrested outside a Chicago steakhouse attempting to purchase cocaine. According to a federal complaint, Hurd told undercover agents that he wanted to distribute 5 to 10 kilograms of cocaine and 1,000 pounds of marijuana per week in the Chicago area.

Federal agents moved in during the drug sting and took Hurd into custody. Hurd plead guilty to the charges and served 10 years of his sentence at the Bastrop penitentiary in Texas.

U.S. District Judge Jorge Solis presented the 15-year sentence. It was shorter than the recommended federal sentencing of 27 to 34 years.

‘You had everything going for you,’ Solis told Hurd during the court proceedings. He added that he thought the case was a ‘tragedy.’

Hurd played for the Dallas Cowboys and Chicago Bears in his NFL career. He recorded 53 catches, 739 yards and two touchdowns in six NFL seasons.

The Bears cut Hurd during the 2011 season after he signed a three-year deal worth $5 million. He went undrafted after the 2006 NFL Draft and got his start with the Cowboys.