NEW CITY, New York (Reuters) – Former New York Giants football Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to charges he paid an underage girl for sex at a New York hotel.

Taylor, 51, wearing a dark suit, appeared in Rockland County Court with his wife by his side to face felony charges stemming from the May 6 incident at the Holiday Inn in Montebello, some 35 miles northwest of New York City.

Taylor, whose combination of size, strength and speed made him one of the most dominant defensive players in NFL history, was charged by a grand jury with third-degree rape, accusing him of intercourse with a 16-year-old girl, engaging in oral sex with a minor and third-degree criminal sexual act. The rape count carries a maximum sentence of four years in state prison.

The former linebacker paid the runaway girl $300 for sex, police said in announcing Taylor’s arrest.

Attorney Arthur Aidala told reporters outside the courthouse that his client’s next appearance was scheduled for August 24 to set a trial date but he would not rule out a plea bargain.

“A plea bargain is possible at any time in any case,” Aidala said, but added, “Mr. Taylor is looking forward to this (trial) going forward and putting this behind him.”

Court papers filed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan against Rasheed Davis, accused of acting as the girl’s pimp and bringing her to Taylor’s hotel room, said Taylor admitted to sex acts with the girl but was told she was 19.

Ignorance of a minor’s age is not a defense to third-degree rape.