Earl Thomas: Arrest Warrant Issued For NFL Star Over Alleged Threatening Messages

An arrest warrant has been issued for Earl Thomas in Austin, Texas, after the NFL star allegedly violated a court protective order, according to reports.

The 33-year-old former All-Pro safety is accused of violating a court protective order by sending threatening messages to a woman about her and her children, the Austin American-Statesman reported, citing police.

Signed on April 27 by Magistrate George Thomas, the warrant charged Thomas with a third-degree felony for allegedly violating the protective order two or more times within 12 months, according to court records obtained by the outlet.

Thomas had not been booked into jail in Travis County, where the case was assigned, as of Friday afternoon.

Trey Dolezal, a lawyer and sports agent who represents Thomas in an ongoing divorce, said the warrant stems from the seven-time Pro Bowl safety reaching out to his wife, Nina, to see their children.

"They were consciously and collectively working together to see his kids," Dolezal told Austin American-Statesman. "I don't really understand how he could be in violation by working together to visit with his children."

Thomas violated a protective order that was issued in May 2021 by a Travis County civil court judge, police alleged in the arrest affidavit.

The order stated that Thomas could communicate with the woman only through a co-parenting phone app, which she claimed the athlete refuses to download. Instead, the woman alleged to police that Thomas reaches out to her by phone and arrives unannounced at places she frequents.

She also alleged that Thomas began sending her text messages that threaten her and her children.

Police said that Thomas allegedly sent a text to the woman on April 18 telling her that he obtained two handguns. Later that day, the athlete texted: "Waiting on hand in foot (sic) is why I'll kick ur a--," according to authorities.

Thomas was previously arrested in 2021 on a misdemeanor charge for carrying a weapon unlawfully. He agreed to forfeit the weapon, and the case was dismissed in February this year.

Thomas' wife Nina filed for divorce in November 2020. She was arrested in May that year after she allegedly pointed a loaded gun at Thomas' head after breaking into a vacation home and finding him with another woman.

The arrest warrant was issued just days after Thomas said that he hopes to return to the NFL. He has not played since 2020, when the Baltimore Ravens released him after he punched teammate Chuck Clark during a training camp practice.

"I'm ready," Thomas said in a text message to ESPN's Adam Schefter in April. "I'm in shape. My timing is on point -- I'm proud of that."

Thomas was once considered one of the best safeties in the NFL for his brash and physical style. He thrived with the Seattle Seahawks before their working relationship became strained. In 2018, Thomas flashed his right middle finger toward coach Pete Carroll while being carted off with a broken leg.

The Ravens took him in a year later and signed him to a four-year deal worth $55 million. But Thomas lasted only 17 months in Baltimore, with his stay not exactly rosy due to multiple incidents, according to ESPN.