Rams WR Stedman Bailey out of surgery after being shot in head

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Wednesday, November 25, 2015

St. Louis Rams third-year wide receiver Stedman Baileyis out of surgery and resting in the intensive care unit after being shot in a car in Florida on Tuesday night, the City of Miami Gardens Police Department said Wednesday.

Police did not describe the nature of Bailey's injuries, but a source confirmed toESPN's Josina Anderson that he was shot twice in the head. A Rams source told ESPN's Nick Wagoner that the team believes Bailey's injuries are not life-threatening.

St. Louis coach Jeff Fisher said Bailey's surgery took between four and six hours. However, a source told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter surgery took nine hours.

Bailey's cousin, Antwan Reeves, also was shot and was taken into surgery on Tuesday night, according to police. Two minors also were in the car when another vehicle drove by and fired shots, police said.

Reeves, who was the driver of the vehicle Bailey was in, was shot multiple times while attempting to shield the children in the car from bullets, the source told Anderson, and his wounds are more serious.

The children in the car were unharmed, police said.

Police said the incident took place at 8:45 p.m. at a Miami Gardens home, and they are looking for a light-colored, four-door sedan, which is possibly a Buick Regal.

Bailey's hometown is Miramar, Florida, which is about 7 miles from Miami Gardens.

Fisher said Wednesday that he was aware Bailey was in South Florida.

"I was aware of where he was. I knew he was working out and he was taking care of himself, and he was getting ready to help us win games when his suspension was concluded," he said.

Several of Bailey's Rams teammates took to Twitter to offer their support and asked fans to keep him in their thoughts.

Earlier this month, the NFL suspended Bailey four games for violation of its substance abuse policy. Because he was suspended, Bailey was not made available to the media, but he took to his Instagram account to post an extended apology in which he referred to his choices as "idiotic" and "disgraceful."

Bailey would have been eligible to return to the active roster Dec. 7.

Bailey also was suspended four games for violating the NFL's policy on performance-enhancing substances before the 2014 season. That suspension was later reduced to two games after a change in the league's policy.

Bailey, who was the Rams' 2013 third-round pick out of West Virginia, had been the team's third receiver for most of this season but was rarely involved in the offense. He had 12 catches for 182 yards and a touchdown in the first eight games. His touchdown celebrationagainst theCardinals, in which he pretended to go to sleep in the corner of the end zone with the football as a pillow, drew a fine for using the ball as a prop during a celebration.

ESPN's Coley Harvey and Nick Wagoner, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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