BREAKING NEWS: Kansas City Chiefs sign former Buffalo Bills punter Matt Araiza

The former Buffalo Bills draft pick never saw the field after being named in, and later dropped from, a lawsuit that accused Araiza and multiple other Sand Diego State players of rape

The Kansas City Chiefs are again taking a chance on a player with a controversial past.

Multiple reports from NFL Insiders indicate that the team plans to sign 23-year-old free-agent punter Matt Araiza.

The Buffalo Bills drafted the talented punter in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He never saw the field after a lawsuit was filed by a woman who alleged she was raped by the punter and other former San Diego State University football players in 2021.

Araiza was ultimately dropped from the lawsuit in December 2023. The woman agreed to drop Araiza from the lawsuit if the punter agreed to dismiss his defamation countersuit against her.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler broke the signing news early on Thursday afternoon.
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The Chiefs confirmed the signing about one hour after reports started surfacing.
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Araiza has yet to play a down of football in the NFL after being cut by the Bills in 2022, two days after the suit was filed. He has expressed a desire for another chance at professional football in the months following his name being dropped from the lawsuit.

“Thankfully, there was extensive evidence that was key to securing Matt’s voluntary dismissal from this lawsuit,” Araiza’s attorneys, Dick Semerdjian and Kristen Bush, said in a statement late last year. “Matt was and has always been innocent. The case is over, and Matt has prevailed.”

The lawsuit against four other former San Diego State University remains active. The rape was reported to the San Diego Police Department one day after the alleged sexual assault occurred in 2021.

According to court filings, the woman at the center of the lawsuit alleged that she was 17 and attending an off-campus party in October 2021 when Araiza, then 21, had sex with her in a side yard before bringing her into the house where a group of men took turns raping her.

Araiza and most of the other players named in the lawsuit have maintained that encounters they did have with the woman were consensual.

The former SDSU student’s countersuit claims he stayed in the backyard and never entered the home during the party. He also claims to have left the party entirely 30 minutes before the alleged sexual assault occurred.

Multiple media outlets obtained and reported on an audio recording of a meeting between prosecutors and the woman in which Deputy San Diego District Attorney Trisha Amador states that Araiza “wasn’t even at the party anymore” and wasn’t visible in videos recovered from the off-campus party on the night of the alleged sexual assault.

Araiza, a 2021 All-American, was nicknamed the “Punt God” during his time at SDSU for his strong leg and booming kicks. The punter was a large part of the best football season in SDSU history, a 12-2 season during his senior year.

The punter’s sports representation sent out confirmation of the signing, thanking the Chiefs and General Manager Brett Veach for taking a chance on Araiza.
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“I am proud and honored to sign a contract with the @Chiefs,” Araiza said in a statement released by his agent. “I am thrilled to be able to continue my NFL career. I want to thank my family, who have been my rock and my many friends who have been unwavering in their support. I am excited to begin the next phase of my career with the Super Bowl Champs!”

The move likely means the end of punter Tommy Townsend’s time in Kansas City. The two-time Super Bowl LVIII champion is a free agent heading into the 2024 offseason.

Araiza would be a much cheaper option than signing Townsend to a second contract. It’s far from the first time the Chiefs and Andy Reid have taken a discounted chance on a player who has been surrounded by personal controversy.