Tennessee Titans wide receiver Calvin Ridley said Wednesday that a dispute with an airport valet Saturday night began when he tried to retrieve his truck without a claim ticket, offering his account of an incident that reportedly left the attendant injured.
Speaking publicly about the episode for the first time, Ridley said he followed the process for a lost ticket by providing identification, filling out a form and showing the attendant a photograph that he said helped establish the truck belonged to him.
Ridley said his wife, mother and children were waiting elsewhere at the airport around 11 p.m. while he went alone to collect the vehicle.
“They gave me the hardest time to get my truck,” Ridley said. “I took my keys from the valet. I gave him all the info I had, and that was it.”
Ridley said the attendant then claimed he had injured a finger during the exchange. Ridley said he did not know how the injury occurred.
“I don’t know what I did. I didn’t look at nothing. He yelled I broke his finger,” Ridley said. “I don’t know what happened.”
Ridley said he subsequently retrieved the truck’s registration and presented it to the attendant before leaving with his family. He said he was not detained and had not been contacted by law enforcement as of Wednesday. He also said he did not know whether he would face charges.
The Titans acknowledged the incident Sunday and said they were communicating with the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority.
“We’re aware of everything that’s happening; from my understanding, it was a very minor miscommunication at the airport,” Titans coach Robert Saleh said Monday. “Unfortunately, the law enforcements have it, and that’s about as far as I can go in commenting.”
Ridley, 31, remained with Tennessee after Tuesday’s trade deadline. He has six catches for 91 yards in seven games this season for the Titans (1-7), who host the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.