Former NFL quarterback Chris Simms pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges he drove his car while high on marijuana, and an officer testified that Simms told him at a checkpoint that he had been smoking. The quarterback, the son of former New York Giants quarterback Phil Simms, pleaded not guilty in a Manhattan courtroom to charges of driving while impaired and driving while impaired by drugs. Simms, 29, could face up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted. Simms, a former Tennessee Titans backup QB who is now unsigned, was stopped at a Manhattan police checkpoint on July 1. The officer who arrested him testified Thursday that Simms admitted he had taken four puffs of marijuana but there was none left in the car. Officer Francisco Acosta of the Manhattan South Task force testified, saying he stopped Simms after he made an erratic turn near the checkpoint in his Mercedes Benz sometime after midnight. Acosta said Simms' wife was in the front seat and two men were in the back seat. Read more: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5658484
