BALTIMORE (AP) - Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Marcell Dareus is in trouble again.
Dareus was sent home for violating a team rule before Buffalo faced the Ravens in a preseason game Saturday night.
The team would not discuss specifics on the violation, but general manager Brandon Beane and first-year coach Sean McDermott were obviously displeased.
“Sean and I are going to do things the right way,” Beane said. “He violated a team rule, so we sent him home. Disappointing.”
Asked if further discipline is a possibility, Beane responded, “Not sure, to be honest with you. This was the move we wanted to make today and we’ll talk more about it when we get back to Buffalo.”
This isn’t the first time Dareus has been a distraction to the Bills. He’s been arrested twice and suspended twice since being selected in the first round - third overall - by Buffalo in the 2011 draft.
In the midst of a six-year, $108 million contract, Dareus opened each of the past two seasons serving NFL substance abuse-related suspensions, including a four-game ban last year.
“It’s very disappointing,” Beane said. “Any player that you have to send home, this is not the norm. This is not what you’re looking for. Obviously a guy with his contract status, you would hope that he would be a better leader than that, and hopefully he learns from it and moves on and continues to be a Buffalo Bill.”
Beane and McDermott are both trying to set a positive tone in their first year in Buffalo, and this transgression goes against that trend.
“Everybody’s got to be on-board right now, so hopefully this is something he’ll learn from,” Beane said. “We have expectations, we have standards that everybody has to live by. If you’re not, then you’re not going to be here.”
___
For more NFL coverage: https://www.pro32.ap.org and https://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL
Please read our comment policy before commenting.