Browns Defensive End Lonnie Phelps Drives Car Into Restaurant, Arrested For DUI

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Cleveland Browns defensive end Lonnie Phelps' Wednesday night included driving his car into a restaurant and being put in the back of a cop car in handcuffs. 

The 23-year-old drove his 2024 Hyundai SUV into the Red Shoe Island Bistro, a high-end restaurant in Key West, Florida. According to a police report obtained by Cleveland.com, Phelps and a female passenger appeared under the influence of alcohol or drugs after the crash. He refused a breathalyzer test and was charged with drunken driving and damaging property. A spokesman for the Browns told the outlet that the team is aware of the incident and is gathering more information.

The owner of the building Phelps crashed into estimated the damage at $300,000 while noting that the outdoor lounge happened to be closed Wednesday night, but if it wasn't, Phelps could have seriously injured or killed guests seated outside.

The police report noted that Phelps turned away from officers during a portion of an interview, saying he was afraid he would be shot. He also went on a rant about females and Russia, according to the report.

"Phelps talked about how thirsty he was, how he did not know what I was going to do to him because females are the worst, asked me not to kill him, asked me how long it takes to bail out, how long I was the detective and informed me I was Russian," the report stated, per TMZ.

Phelps did not appear in a regular-season game during his rookie campaign with the Browns last season and spent the year on the practice squad. He began his college career at Miami Ohio before transferring to Kansas where he earned second-team All-Big 12 honors in 2022. Phelps inked a one-year contract for $795,000 with Cleveland for the upcoming season.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.