Retired NFL superstar Eddie George is adamant ... he's JUST FRIENDS with pro golfer Rachel Connor ... despite the fact he was a passenger in her car when she was busted for DUI at 2 AM this week.

George -- who's been married to singer Tamara Johnson since 2004 -- tells TMZ ... Connor was "simply trying to be nice by offering me a ride" Wednesday morning after a golf event in Florida.


George says he "realized that Rachel lived the closest to where I was staying. So she offered to drop me off.  I believed her to be competent to drive and not impaired at all."

He was wrong ... allegedly. As TMZ first reported, cops believe Connor was HAMMERED ... because she could barely walk, couldn't count and reeked of booze. George was never accused of any wrongdoing.

Click here... it's not over yet

Retired NFL star Eddie George was sitting in the passenger seat ... when pro golfer Rachel Connor was busted for drunk driving in Florida early this morning ... TMZ has learned.

Connor -- a 21-year-old British golf pro -- was pulled over at 2:21 AM in Sarasota, Florida ... after cops say they noticed her speeding and weaving in her lane.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ ... cops smelled booze when they approached the vehicle ... and Connor admitted to drinking 2 vodka cranberries earlier in the evening.

Cops noticed a man in the passenger seat ... who was identified as 38-year-old Eddie George ... former NFL star and Heisman Trophy winner.

According to the report, Connor was given a breathalyzer test and blew a .133 and a .137 ... way over the legal limit, .08. Cops say she had trouble walking straight and couldn't count in numerical order.

According to the report, Cops asked Rachel if she could turn back the clock and change any of her decisions what would it be? ... And Rachel responded, she would have decided "not to drive."

Hours before the arrest, Connor tweeted a photo of Eddie on the golf course ... and another photo of herself and Eddie posing together at an event.


For the record -- Eddie was NOT arrested. We're told he took a cab home after the incident. 

We called reps for both Eddie and Rachel -- so far, no response.

Former NFL stud Eddie George is NOT current NFL superstar Calvin "Megatron" Johnson -- but our camera guy thought he was ... and you gotta watch Eddie played him like a violin. Awesome!