Matt Araiza Case: How NFL Teams Handle Challenging, Sensitive Issues
Analysis 5/12/23
Matt Araiza, one of the top punting prospects in recent years, was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 2022. In the following months, he was implicated in a sexual assault and rape case, and the Bills released him before his first regular-season NFL game.
In December, a San Diego prosecutor declined to press criminal charges against Araiza, though the alleged victim has filed a civil lawsuit against the former San Diego State punter and others. Araiza is available for all 32 NFL teams to sign for an opportunity to earn a job.Â
More than a year after Araiza was drafted, he's now attempting to negotiate his way back into the league. According to his agent, Joe Linta, Araiza sent an audio recording to approximately 20 teams in hopes of extricating himself from his current situation. The Dec. 7 recording, more than 100 minutes long, is of San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Trisha Amador explaining to Araiza's accuser why no criminal charges would be filed, including evidence to support the prosecution's belief that Araiza was not present at the time of the alleged rape.
"I know the teams know the true facts," Araiza told USA TODAY Sports. "They’ve heard the audio. They know this isn’t true. It’s that we need the public to understand as well. Because I think teams have a fear that if they sign me, there will be a little bit of backlash because the public has been told things that aren’t true."
Vetting Red Flags
For NFL teams, situations like this one never have simple answers.
"These are difficult decisions you have to make, especially regarding the allegations made," said former NFL team executive Rick Spielman, now an analyst for The 33rd Team. "When dealing with those allegations, you need to be sure that there is absolutely no way that they can come back and bite you or the player. Certainly, ownership is involved in any decision, the business side as well, and you make sure the whole organization is involved in all decisions, everything from A to Z.Â
"It seems like there’s no criminal case there. There’s definitely still a red flag (with Araiza being) named in the civil suit."
Former NFL executive Jeff Diamond notes any impending legal issues must remain front and center.
"Teams also will want to know of the timing of the civil suit in deciding whether to wait until the case is concluded if they’re interested in signing him, and in consideration of the distraction element to Araiza and the team if they wanted to sign him before the case is heard," said Diamond, a contributor for The 33rd Team.
"When dealing with those allegations, you need to be sure that there is absolutely no way that they can come back and bite you or the player." — Rick Spielman
Like Spielman, Hall of Fame executive Bill Polian dealt with similar situations when he ran the Indianapolis Colts. The process for reaching decisions on signing, keeping, releasing or drafting players who may have character issues was nearly identical for Polian and Spielman.
"You call the league office and security people and have them tell you what information they have, have them give a readout of potential discipline, if any, he would face," said Polian, an analyst for The 33rd Team. "In this case, I would call (Bills general manager) Brandon Beane immediately and get his take on things.
"Assuming the league office was OK with it, and Brandon was OK with it, you would take it to the owner and ask, ‘Is this something you want to deal with? Here is what we know.’ If you get the OK, then the next step would be to bring him in for a tryout.
"But, if at any point in that chain of events, someone says no, then it is a no."
The 33rd Team’s Mike Tannenbaum, former general manager of the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins, encourages any teams looking at a player with "red flags" in his history to consult the NFL Players Association, the school the player attended and the prosecutors who handled such cases.
"You talk to as many people as you can," including the player, his agent and attorneys, "and get as much information as you can," said Tannenbaum, an analyst for The 33rd Team.
Potential Backlash
It’s never merely a football issue, either. Whether the player can help your team needs to be answered, but it also comes down to trusting the player.
Teams must consider whether or not there could be backlash from adding him to the roster.
"Does it cross over into the business side, and a potential sponsor or partner is saying they are going to drop support if you bring in a player like this?" Spielman asked. "You have to tie in with whoever runs the business side. You have talked to his lawyers and gotten his take on the situation, gotten the police report and filing of the lawsuits. Then you even have the in-house lawyers look at it as well."
Added Polian: "Assuredly, there would be some negative publicity, and that would have to be answered at the highest of club levels. My experience is fanbase issues only crop up if the person you are adding is notorious. And in that case, you probably wouldn’t go near him anyway.
"This kid generally is not well known by the fanbase, so it is usually interest groups that begin to raise issues, and then people might join in from other interest groups. That is not necessarily a bad thing."
"Assuredly, there would be some negative publicity, and that would have to be answered at the highest of club levels." — Bill Polian
Araiza’s opportunities could be extremely limited for another reason: his football position.
"I don’t see a team looking at Araiza right now, who has not yet played in the NFL and plays less of a priority position as a punter," said Diamond, adding it’s not the same as teams such as the Cleveland Browns bidding for three-time Pro Bowl quarterback Deshaun Watson despite his legal entanglements. "I think NFL teams will wait until after Araiza’s civil case goes to trial, and if he is exonerated, then there will be a limited number of teams who probably will try to sign him."
What sort of clubs might that be?
"There are teams that have a history of bringing in controversial players such as the Browns (with Watson) or the Kansas City Chiefs when they drafted Tyreek Hill after he had pleaded guilty to domestic assault in 2014, and the Dolphins, who traded for Hill last year," Diamond said.
Spielman said there could be more of a market if a team goes through trouble in the preseason with its punting.Â
"This is different from an offensive and defensive player," he said. "Not to devalue a punter, but is it worth it for that position? I can imagine an owner saying just that: 'He is a punter, do we want to go down this road?'"
Barry Wilner was a sportswriter for the Associated Press for 46 years. He has covered virtually every major sporting event, including 14 Olympics, 9 World Cups, 34 Super Bowls, the World Series, and the Stanley Cup Final, and has written 75 books. Follow him on Twitter @Wilner88