PHOENIX -- Police say Arizona Cardinals running back Jonathan Dwyer head-butted his wife after she refused his sexual advances, and broke her nose.
The details surfaced Thursday in a law enforcement report a day after Dwyer was arrested on aggravated assault charges and deactivated from all team activities. He spent a night in jail and was released early Thursday.
CBS affiliate KPHO-TV reports that Dwyer was released about 5 a.m. Thursday morning on $25,000 bond. He mumbled something to reporters, and when asked if he would play football again, he said, 'I will.' He then got into a taxi and was driven away.
The altercation occurred on July 21 at their Phoenix residence. The next day, another dispute between the couple turned violent when Dwyer punched his wife in the face and struck his 17-month-old son in the stomach with a shoe, according to the report. The son wasn't injured.
In a police interview, Dwyer denied committing an assault, though he acknowledged that he punched walls in his home, threw a phone and that his wife bit his lip during the disputes.
The Cardinals said they first learned of the domestic abuse accusations against Dwyer on Wednesday afternoon. By evening, citing 'the serious nature of these allegations,' the team had deactivated Dwyer from all team activities.
The quick reaction came with the backdrop of intense criticism of the NFL's handling of a spate of such cases.
Dwyer, led to the jail in handcuffs on Wednesday, was charged with three counts, including 'aggravated assault causing a fracture' involving the 27-year-old victim.
Dwyer signed with the Cardinals this year and was their second-string running back after spending the last four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
He scored a touchdown last week in Arizona's victory over the New York Giants. His best year for Pittsburgh was 2012 when injuries depleted the team's backfield in the middle of the season. Dwyer filled in and had 100-yard-plus games in consecutive weeks.
Dwyer, from Marietta, Georgia, was a sixth-round draft pick of the Steelers out of Georgia Tech in 2010.
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