Dallas Cowboys star Brandon Aubrey has opened up on his “mistake” of thinking he was not going to be picked for jury duty – after he was selected and left having to train under the cover of darkness.

The placekicker’s preparations for his team’s clash with the San Francisco 49ers following the bye week were thrown into disarray after he was picked to attend a felony trial at a court in Tarrant County, Fort Worth. The 29-year-old eventually was able to play in the game, with the case concluding with a guilty verdict.

After the offender in question was sentenced to 65 years in prison, Aubrey was free to resume his normal regimen ahead of the Cowboys’ game versus the Atlanta Falcons. Now, the star has reflected on the odd set of events, while revealing that he never expected to be selected in the first place.

Looking back over the experience, he acknowledged that he was expecting to not be called upon for jury duty due to his public profile He said to the official Cowboys website: “I pushed it back, and when I called to push it back a second time, they didn’t allow it, and it slipped through the cracks until it was too late.

“It was definitely an ‘oh […]’ moment. I have a D.A. [as a] sister-in-law, and she said, ‘They will never pick you with your public figure status.’ I disclosed that I had a sister-in-law who was in the D.A.’s office in Dallas, and my brother’s a lawyer. So, I was just kind of told I wouldn’t be picked, so I just sat there, and I didn’t really say much. I was definitely surprised when he picked me.”

Explaining how it came about that he was eventually picked, he continued: “He went through the room, the rest of the section, and then came back to me, and before I could really say anything with my hand up, he just said, ‘Oh, you won’t have any conflicts. We don’t meet over the weekend.

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Brandon Aubrey of the Dallas Cowboys was eventually able to still play versus the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium

Brandon Aubrey of the Dallas Cowboys was eventually able to still play versus the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium ( 

Image:

Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)

“And he walked away. I could have been more assertive at that point. Everyone knows who I am there, and I don’t want to sound like I think I’m better than anyone else or that I’m above the job, so I kind of sat there quietly and didn’t say anything, which was probably a mistake.”

After that mishap, Aubrey was tasked with juggling his football commitments with his duties in the court room, even having to practice in the evenings. He recalled: “It was 9-to-5 in downtown Fort Worth in the court, hop on the highway after and race down here. It’s about an hour and a half to get here.

“So, it puts me here around 6:45, 7:00, and hustle to get ready. I wanted to go to the indoor, but we have a high school game, so on the field fighting the sunset It reminded me a lot of my schedule as a software engineer when I’d work from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and then go race down to this area, a local field not too far away, and try to fight the sunset as well. It’s something I’ve done before.”