INDIANAPOLIS — Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Friday that he expects Ray Rice to remain with the Ravens.
The running back was arrested and charged with simple assault-domestic violence stemming from an incident involving his fiancee early Saturday morning.
When asked Friday at the NFL scouting combine if there were scenarios where Rice wouldn’t be a part of the team, Harbaugh replied: “Not that I’m aware of. I haven’t seen anything that would remotely make me think that.”
Rice is facing legal action, and the NFL will review his status under the league’s personal-conduct policy.
Rice and his fiancee, Janay Palmer, were arrested after a physical altercation at an Atlantic City casino. Video of Rice dragging Palmer out of an elevator was obtained by TMZ. Atlantic City police officials have referred the case to the prosecutors’ office for review.
“The facts will determine the consequences,” Harbaugh said. “That’s always the case, right? It’s a process. We have to see how it goes.”
Harbaugh acknowledged that it’s a complicated situation given that the case remains in the court system.
“Yeah, there’s a lot of facts, a lot of process that has to be worked through in anything like this,” Harbaugh said. “There are a lot of question marks. Ray’s character, I think his character, you guys know his character. You start with that.”
Harbaugh said that Rice and Palmer remain engaged to be married and are getting counseling for their relationship.
Harbaugh spoke to Rice on the telephone after his arrest.
“Ray and I, we’re close,” Harbaugh said. “We have been for a long time, so it’s an easy conversation to have. I love Janay. She’s a great person. The two people, obviously they’ve got a couple of issues they have got to work through. They are both committed to doing that.
“That was the main takeaway for me from the conversation. They understand all the issues. They’re getting a lot of counseling and those kind of things. That’s very positive. That was the main takeaway.