It’s hard to bid adieu to a “Punt God,” but the Buffalo Bills begrudgingly dredged up a conscience and booted starting punter Matt Araiza off the team. The rookie from San Diego State University was sued by a teen who claims he and two former teammates allegedly gang-raped her last year.
After dragging their feet for months, Buffalo released Araiza, nicknamed “Punt God,” on Saturday.
Bills General Manager Brandon Beane said during a press conference that “we just think it’s the best move for everyone to move on from Matt and let him take care of this situation and focus on that. So, we’re gonna part ways there.” The Bills are slinking away in shame for delaying the inevitable, is more like it.
If there is another avenue for “Punt God’’ to play in the NFL, it could go through Cleveland. After all, the Browns previously acquired quarterback Deshaun Watson, the alleged serial massage therapist abuser now serving an 11-game suspension. The Browns also acquired the kicker of females Kareem Hunt.
Shockingly, Beane said they had no idea about Araiza’s notorious reputation when they drafted him in April. This from the member of a league that vets, dissects and analyzes prospects like crazy.
“The last 48 hours have been very difficult for a lot of people. It’s been tough. And you know, we sympathize with this whole situation, all the parties involved, this young woman, what she went through,” Beane said Saturday. Sean McDermott, the head coach who was going to make “Punt God” a starter, was there, too.
Buffalo handed Araiza the starting punter role last Monday when they cut veteran Matt Haack. They planned to go with “Punt God,” college football’s leading punter last year. The Bills insisted they had “conducted a thorough examination” into the lawsuit against Araiza. Maybe they thought they could fly under the radar, but ultimately it was too difficult to ignore the egg on their collective face.
Beane said the team tried to avoid a “rush to judgment.” based on the information it had, while noting Araiza claimed innocence. They “accomplished” this by naming him their starter 15 days before the season begins. No hurrying there. We’re not “a judge and a jury,” Beane said. Obviously not. Nor are they a great defender of alleged gang-rape victims.
Araiza’s agent, Joe Linta, said his client/alleged rapist is innocent of a trumped-up lawsuit and watched the Bills’ most recent exhibition game from an undisclosed location. Araiza’s attorney, Kerry Armstrong, also said the allegations are “false.” They stand to make good money from their client if “Punt God” can beat the rap.
The alleged victim of the gang rape who filed the lawsuit was a 17-year-old girl attending a Halloween party at Araiza’s home off the San Diego State campus when the incident supposedly happened.
A final word from the Bills. Beane said the Bills culture is more important than winning football games. For the past few months, the opposite appeared to be true.
