Eagles WR Josh Huff: What pro athlete doesn't have gun?

PHILADELPHIA -- Eagles wide receiver Josh Huff expressed regret for Tuesday's incident and apologized to his teammates and the organization for causing a distraction. But when it came to questions about his decision to carry a gun with hollow-point bullets, Huff stood his ground.

"I'm a professional athlete. What professional athlete don't have a gun?" Huff said. "I have a wife and I have a son at home. My job is to protect them at all costs, and my job is to protect myself as well, even though I know I have security here, but I have to protect myself as well."

Asked if he believes everybody in the Eagles locker room and around the league carries a gun, he said, "I do. Yes, I do."

Huff has been charged with possessing an unloaded 9 mm handgun without a permit and a small amount of marijuana after he was pulled over for speeding on the Walt Whitman Bridge on the New Jersey side.

The 25-year-old acknowledged that he was at the Eagles' NovaCare facility Tuesday morning prior to the arrest but told ESPN that he made a stop before heading home over the Walt Whitman -- to pick up his gun. He would not reveal where.

"No," said Huff, when asked if he brought the weapon into the NovaCare facility. "I'm not Gilbert Arenas, bro. No. No. I'm not going to bring a gun onto the premises. I'm not going to bring a gun and put my life, put my teammates in jeopardy of anything. That's not me. It's solely for protection, and that's that."

Huff confirmed that the gun is licensed in Texas and acknowledged that he wasn't as familiar with the New Jersey laws as he should have been. He said that he felt his life has been threatened in the past, which is why he chooses to carry a gun.

"I'm from Houston. You can't trust a lot of people in Houston," he said. "There's always somebody out to get you. You've got to protect yourself. Even when I'm back in Houston, I always have a gun on me, because there's been several instances in Houston where I've lost a friend to gun violence, and he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, so why would I let that happen to me?"

Coach Doug Pederson said there would not be any immediate discipline as a result of the arrest and that the plan is for Huff to play Sunday at the New York Giants.

"I know my actions come with consequences, and I understand that and own up to it. All I can do is take it a day at a time right now," Huff said. "That's what I'm doing. That's what I'm focused on. My focus right now is on the Giants."