National Football League

Jets' Ellis sentenced to jail time

Published May. 21, 2012 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Jets defensive tackle Kenrick Ellis will serve 45 days in jail, beginning June 15, after reaching a plea agreement with Virginia prosecutors on an assault charge.

The agreement was reached Thursday in a Hampton, Va., courtroom and approved by a judge Monday morning, according to Ellis' attorney.

Ellis entered an Alford plea -- in which a defendant concedes there is sufficient evidence against him but does not admit guilt -- to a misdemeanor count of assault and battery.

Ellis, 24, had faced a more serious charge of malicious wounding for the incident that occurred in April 2010 while he was a student at Hampton University.

He still faces a $3 million civil lawsuit from the victim, Dennis Eley, who accuses the 6ft 5in 330-pound behemoth of breaking his nose and jaw in the fight.

Ellis will report to jail a day after the Jets end their minicamp. He will miss at least the first three days of training camp in Cortland, N.Y., where practices will start July 27.

The Jets knew the charges against Ellis when they drafted him in the third round in 2011. Ellis played in five games this past season, starting two.