Lynch meets with NFL commissioner, faces possible suspension

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BUFFALO, N.Y. " Marshawn Lynch met Tuesday with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who will decide whether the Buffalo Bills running back will be disciplined after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello confirmed in an e-mail to The Associated Press that the meeting took place, but did not provide any other details or a timetable for when Goodell will rule. A message left with Lynch's agent, Michael Sullivan, was not returned.

Lynch faces league fines and suspension without pay from regular-season games for violating the NFL's player personal conduct policy after his arrest near Los Angeles on Feb. 11. In searching a parked car carrying Lynch, Culver City police found a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun inside a backpack in the trunk.

Prosecutors said the backpack contained other items belonging to Lynch. Police said they also found four marijuana cigarettes in the car, but no drug charges were filed.

After pleading guilty to having a concealed firearm in a vehicle, Lynch was sentenced this month to 80 hours community service and three years' probation. The Bills' 2007 first-round draft pick also issued an apology, saying, "I am embarrassed by my recent arrest and conviction. I deeply regret that I placed myself in this situation."

The Bills have declined comment during the NFL's investigation.

This is Lynch's second brush with the law in less than a year, which is expected to factor into Goodell's decision. Last June, Lynch pleaded guilty to a traffic violation and admitted driving off after striking a female pedestrian with his car near Buffalo's downtown bar district May 31.

Goodell did not discipline Lynch for the traffic violation after meeting with him at training camp last summer.

Lynch had eight touchdowns and rushed for 1,036 yards last season. He went to his first Pro Bowl game last month, running for a game-high 48 yards during the AFC's 30-21 loss to the NFC.