Buffalo Bills rookie punter Matt Araiza didn't play in the team’s final preseason game on Friday night against the Carolina Panthers, following civil lawsuit allegations that he and two former San Diego State teammates gang raped a 17-year-old girl in 2021.
Araiza traveled with the team to Charlotte, and was at Bank of America Stadium while Buffalo’s other special teams players took the field for warmups. Backup quarterback Matt Barkley assumed the Bills' punting duties.
Araiza released a brief statement during the game Friday.
"The facts of the incident are not what they are portrayed in the lawsuit or in the press," Araiza said, via the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.