Matt Araiza accused of rape, served with a lawsuit.

[dje85]

11 minutes ago, Bob in STL said:

Haack is a below average punter, but a very good holder.    if nothing else he was a good teammate.  

 

The holder part of it is why Bojo is gone.  A punter can lose a game for you and so can a bad holder.   This mess effects 2 positions.   The heat of battle of a real NFL game against the SB champion Rams, the Bills may be venerable and possibly distracted.  

 

This is mess for the team and for all parties.  

 

 

 

That is all conjecture. How do you how good of a team mate he was? Were you on the team? If he was good a his job and not the 22nd or worse at his position last year in all punter categories he wouldn;t of been replaceable / replaced. Which he absolutely is. 

[DrDawkinstein]

2 minutes ago, Aussie Joe said:

So the police want to protect some relative unknowns playing on a mediocre college team from serious criminal allegations ?
 

I’ll take what you say at face value as I don’t live there ..but not good 

 

San Diego State wants to protect its football team since it is the main source of income. Police want to protect the local University which donates big money to their Benevolent association. This is all too common.

[SCBills]

4 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

I agree with this. The only thing I wonder is if more information has come out since the civil lawsuit dropped that may point them in another direction. But as of their statement last night and all of their actions since they were notified,  it was pretty clear where they stand.

Mina Kimes is already going after them about whether they knew about her being 17. 
 

On its own, that’s an issue that would fade away, provided she was telling people she was 18 or Araiza couldn’t have known. 

 

Even if he’s innocent of rape.. As fallout from an explosive allegation, not sure how the Bills handle that one. 
 

Edited August 26, 2022 by SCBills

[DrDawkinstein]

4 minutes ago, Mango said:

 

My sister was raped, the police regularly slut shamed and insulted her at every corner, and refused to help her. It took months for them to even speak to the guy.  The way LEO treats victims of sexual assault is sickening at times. 

 

Sorry to hear that, and sorry that it isnt surprising at all.

[YoloinOhio]

Just now, par73 said:

McDermott and Beane are known for the importance they place on character. Given how long they have known about this, they must have been aware this "storm" was coming. I am surprised that they have "dug in" for a punter (even if they believe he is innocent of rape). Also wonder how the rest of the team feels about this distraction.

The reason is that they believe he’s innocent of the allegations. They don’t believe he should be cut based on allegations that they believe to be untrue. It’s as simple as that. Stay tuned as it could change but that’s my read on it.

[FilthyBeast]

2 minutes ago, par73 said:

McDermott and Beane are known for the importance they place on character. Given how long they have known about this, they must have been aware this "storm" was coming. I am surprised that they have "dug in" for a punter (even if they believe he is innocent of rape). Also wonder how the rest of the team feels about this distraction.

 

It's really disappointing and even though I'm still skeptical of this regimes long term viability, the handling of this situation is a true rookie mistake and terrible look for the organization the longer he's on the roster. Hopefully any minute we'll see news of his release and not having a punter available in a meaningless preseason game is far from the worst thing that can happen.

[appoo]

3 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Mina Kimes is already going after them about whether they knew about her being 17. 
 

On its own, that’s an issue that would fade away, provided she was telling people she was 18 or Araiza couldn’t have known. 

 

Even if he’s innocent of rape.. As fallout from an explosive allegation, not sure how the Bills handle that one. 
 

I mean it’s easy - cut him.  Both practically and morally that’s the path they should take 

[QLBillsFan]

Yes I think winning the court of public opinion has sailed. I’ll be interested to see how convicted the Bills are on his innocence because it’s getting real ugly already. I’m with you in guessing he’s not on this team for Rams game. 

[aristocrat]

2 minutes ago, BUFFALOBART said:

Some Cops treat rape victims, like they are a piece of garbage. I've witnessed such treatment.

 

Very true though I believe it's gotten quite a bit better with training.  Most of the time these things tend to be he said she said which when you're inncoent until proven guilty it doesn't work out for the victim.  

[SCBills]

6 minutes ago, par73 said:

McDermott and Beane are known for the importance they place on character. Given how long they have known about this, they must have been aware this "storm" was coming. I am surprised that they have "dug in" for a punter (even if they believe he is innocent of rape). Also wonder how the rest of the team feels about this distraction.

They aren’t dug in because he’s a punter.

 

They are dug in because, as of now, they believe him and he’s part of the team. 

 

They backed up Shady.  They backed up Dodson. 
 

They are loyal to their players and have their backs.

 

I respect tf out of that, especially given modern day society.  If they lose trust in Araiza and things change, I’m sure they will reverse course, but I highly doubt they will buckle to public pressure if they believe the facts are on their side.  
 

And players see that too… like it or not, it’s part of the process/culture. 
 

 

Edited August 26, 2022 by SCBills

[Mango]

Just now, YoloinOhio said:

The reason is that they believe he’s innocent of the allegations. They don’t believe he should be cut based on allegations that they believe to be untrue. It’s as simple as that. Stay tuned as it could change but that’s my read on it.

 

I think they spoke to Araiza and the victims attorney and really thought that he would settle to get out of the civil suit, and had some assurance from SDSU/SDPD that Araiza would receive some protection. 

That all unraveled when Araiza's camp didn't accept the settlement. I think the org is currently unprepaired because they thought they had this all tied up and under wraps. 

 

Even if Araiza is a choir boy, his unwillingness/inability to keep the org clean is worth cutting him. 

[Solomon Grundy]

6 minutes ago, Warcodered said:

to be fair a lot of the pages are eerily similar to each other.

Will it surpass the Breece Hall thread? 😎

[BillsFanSD]

10 minutes ago, SCBills said:

Honestly, with todays media, anything less than cutting Araiza will not satiate the mob. 
 

That being said, given the Bills statement and how this lawyer is acting, I’d be willing to believe he will be vindicated.. until I saw what Araiza’s lawyer said about a cash grab, which is an insane thing to say out the gate even if you believe it. 
 

What I worry about for the Bills is that they do believe, and maybe have reason to, that Araiza is innocent of the gang rape accusation.   However, they will get slaughtered by the media for the fallout which includes the “sex with a minor” allegation.   On its own, Bills/Araiza could probably get by if she was lying about being 18… But if he isn’t cut for alleged rape, they will make sure he’s cut for “statutory”.  
 

Not sure I see an ending here where we don’t cut him. 

If the "gang rape" allegation doesn't pan out, this whole thing will blow over in five minutes.  Nobody cares if a college student had drunken sex with a 17 year old girl consensually.  

[appoo]

However, the criticism the Bills didn’t talk to the victim is kinda crazy. She’s a Jane Doe. Primary concern here is to protect the alleged victim, and I really doubt the Bills had any path to speaking with her directly. That’s what the attorney is there for

[BullBuchanan]

18 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

Same reason anything happens in America. Money and Football rule the land, and women's health is last priority.

 

Look into the backlog of rape kits we have in this country where the police simply dont process them.

 

Look into how many rapes and sexual assaults get pushed down by police when the local college football team is involved.

"Across the country, as many as 200,000 rape kits sit unopened in police storage while assailants—the people whose genetic fingerprints are decisively coded within such kits—are able to dodge prosecution and, in some cases, strike again. Our latest magazine cover story is an investigation by Barbara Bradley Hagerty into the national backlog of untested rape kits—and its frightening consequences. Amid an ongoing national conversation about serial sexual abusers and how to deal with them, it’s an in-depth look at some of the ways the system fails to catch repeat offenders."

https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2019/07/nationwide-epidemic-of-untested-rape-kits-atlantic-daily/594046/

Edited August 26, 2022 by BullBuchanan

[HomeskillitMoorman]

1 hour ago, mikef272002 said:

1) The girl said she attended High school, she did not say she told him she was 17.

2) She went to the side of the house with Matt, he told her to go down and she did.  He then turned her around and they had sex. 

3) His lawyer and multiple witnesses said he was not in the room when the accusations of rape occurred.

 

This sounds to me like she had sex with a guy at a party, neither considered age before hand.  Everyone keeps saying he raped her, but it does not sound like forced rape to me.  It sounds like once she was in the bedroom, multiple people raped her but Matt was not part of that group and for all we know he didn't even know it occurred. However, of all the men there, Matt is the NFL guy, so that's who they're going to go after for money due to her age, hence the civil case and the multiple texts between lawyers. 

 

I think we should let this play out and hear both sides before we rush to judgment.  If she willingly had sex with Matt, which it appears she did, then Matt should face a misdemeanor. Would any of you want your 21 year old son to go to jail and lose his chance to play int he NFL because he had sex with a girl that was 17 who consented to the sex, especially if your son didn't realize she wasn't 18?  For all we know she could of told him she was 18, the facts on that aren't out yet, only that she told him she was in high school.

 

It's still gross that as a 21 year old that he had sex with a high schooler. And it's bad judgement on his part, if I loved the game I would not risk it on a banging a high schooler even aside from it being sketchy in it of itself. 

[muppy]

@ExiledInIllinois here is some local reaction by SDSU students you might find interesting.  It reads (as has been stated in this thread)  that SDSU police and SD Police both have screwed the pooch in the handling of this case

 

https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/san-diego-state-students-outraged-over-alleged-off-campus-rape/509-82e21ade-c31d-4652-a91e-d6745aa5b79e

[Bob in STL]

Just now, dje85 said:

That is all conjecture. How do you how good of a team mate he was? Were you on the team? If he was good a his job and not the 22nd or worse at his position last year in all punter categories he wouldn;t of been replaceable / replaced. Which he absolutely is. 

I know what Because McDermott just said - he was a good teammate.  That is why they cut him, to provide him more time to find another job.  

 

I said he was a below average punter.  

 

[appoo]

1 minute ago, BillsFanSD said:

If the "gang rape" allegation doesn't pan out, this whole thing will blow over in five minutes.  Nobody cares if a college student had drunken sex with a 17 year old girl consensually.  

Except she’s a minor and that’s the description people are using - that Araiza had sex with a minor

[Augie]

How many pages did the Mario Williams thread get to? Anybody know that fun fact? I ask because, well……this could take a while.  

[SCBills]

2 minutes ago, HomeskillitMoorman said:

 

It's still gross that as a 21 year old that he had sex with a high schooler. And it's bad judgement on his part, if I loved the game I would not risk it on a banging a high schooler even aside from it being sketchy in it of itself. 

It’s gross for a 21 year old to have sex with what he allegedly thought was an 18 year old?

 

Do you watch DiCaprio movies?  Dude is banging just legal women on the reg in his 40’s. 
 

Edited August 26, 2022 by SCBills

[What a Tuel]

3 minutes ago, BillsFanSD said:

If the "gang rape" allegation doesn't pan out, this whole thing will blow over in five minutes.  Nobody cares if a college student had drunken sex with a 17 year old girl consensually.  

 

Its going to be hard for people to let go of that particular allegation though. 

[BillsFanSD]

Just now, appoo said:

Except she’s a minor and that’s the description people are using - that Araiza had sex with a minor

So what?  I had sex with a minor once upon a time, and so did my first girlfriend.  We were just doing what teenagers have been known to do from time to time.  It was fine.  

[StHustle]

Just now, HomeskillitMoorman said:

 

It's still gross that as a 21 year old that he had sex with a high schooler. And it's bad judgement on his part, if I loved the game I would not risk it on a banging a high schooler even aside from it being sketchy in it of itself. 

Amazing how many people assume he knew this. She was at a COLLEGE PARTY. You would think he was at a high school party how much people blame him. She probably looks exactly the same at 18 as she did at 17. Multiple people say she lied and said she was 18 and in college. Nobody asks to see ID before sex at a college party…get real

[Mango]

1 minute ago, Augie said:

How many pages did the Mario Williams thread get to? Anybody know that fun fact? I ask because, well……this could take a while.  

 

I was actually looking for that earlier, wondering the same thing. This thread will likely go on as long as Araiza is on the roster. 

[billsfan89]

2 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

The reason is that they believe he’s innocent of the allegations. They don’t believe he should be cut based on allegations that they believe to be untrue. It’s as simple as that. Stay tuned as it could change but that’s my read on it.

That’s my read on it, at least the team feels that from what they know at the moment they feel he is innocent but this is a completely fluid situation so who knows how that will change as more information becomes available.

[dje85]

2 minutes ago, HomeskillitMoorman said:

 

It's still gross that as a 21 year old that he had sex with a high schooler. And it's bad judgement on his part, if I loved the game I would not risk it on a banging a high schooler even aside from it being sketchy in it of itself. 

When drunk logic gets thrown out the window. Not many go get stupid drunk and plan on getting behind a wheel until they are drunk either. But it happens, and happens a lot. 

[BuffaloBills1998]

1 minute ago, BUFFALOBART said:

- Which because of the age difference, is a Felony, in Ca.

Also he if found guilty of that he would have to register as a sex offender. 

[SectionC3]

27 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

I see it as the opposite. The twitter lawyer is making his side look less credible with his approach. Araiza’s lawyer has gone on record on video and asserted his side. It’s an ongoing criminal investigation as well. How else would you like Matt to fight back at this point? All we have are the civil lawsuit, the twitter lawyer tweets, Matt’s side via his attorney, and the team statement. 

Have the attorney hold a presser, deny everything, say our thoughts are with the victim, particularly after the release of those horrible photos and journal entries, and get on a video a statement that your client had nothing to do with any of those injuries or that harm.  He’s losing the air war.  And the team’s statement means nothing here.  They investigated at a prior time, based on information that may or may not have been complete, and with tools that didn’t allow access to any meaning physical evidence in this case. 

[What a Tuel]

1 minute ago, BUFFALOBART said:

- Which because of the age difference, is a Felony, in Ca.

 

This has been rehashed over and over. CA is a wobbler law in which the facts and situation determine which side the charge falls on. Not black and white math between ages.

[MWK]

4 minutes ago, Bob in STL said:

I know what Because McDermott just said - he was a good teammate.  That is why they cut him, to provide him more time to find another job.  

 

I said he was a below average punter.  

 

 

Beane and McDermott say everyone is a good teammate. Apparently Tommy Sweeney is a leader now too. I do agree that Haack is a horrible punter. If we cut the puntophile, better options are on the waiver wire than Haack.

Edited August 26, 2022 by MWK

[StHustle]

1 minute ago, BUFFALOBART said:

- Which because of the age difference, is a Felony, in Ca.

There is a stipulation in that law that says if you have reason to believe the person was 18 or older than there is no crime. Cops heard him admit to doing having sex with her out of his own mouth and made no arrest. What does that tell you?

[Doc]

So coming up on 20 hours since the news broke nationally and he's still a Buffalo Bill?  Yeah, I'm going with the Bills investigating it and confident he did nothing criminal.

[YoloinOhio]

5 minutes ago, appoo said:

However, the criticism the Bills didn’t talk to the victim is kinda crazy. She’s a Jane Doe. Primary concern here is to protect the alleged victim, and I really doubt the Bills had any path to speaking with her directly. That’s what the attorney is there for

Araiza’s lawyer said he hired a private investigator and provided all the info to the team. Correct, The team would not be talking directly to the young lady. 

Edited August 26, 2022 by YoloinOhio

[QLBillsFan]

9 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

San Diego State wants to protect its football team since it is the main source of income. Police want to protect the local University which donates big money to their Benevolent association. This is all too common.

SDSU just built a new stadium. They are likely getting into the PAC 12. They are a top mid major program. Appreciate that doesn’t mean much to Bills fans.
 

But certainly I don’t care if Alabama you do what’s right. Anything that slows this investigation based on football is totally unacceptable. 

[hemma]

The plaintiff’s attorney seems a bit slippery/greasy.  My gut says she did not choose this guy.

Quite possible he was selected by the father and is a ‘money hammer’, whereas the girl herself may be looking for justice.

 

She may never get closure out of this mess.

 

 

[BarleyNY]

26 minutes ago, The Red King said:

 

It's just that easy?  Cut someone based on just an accusation?  Goodness, can someone accuse Mahomes of something like this?  No proof required even, apparently.

Did you happen to catch the Desean Watson thread?

[HomeskillitMoorman]

2 minutes ago, SCBills said:

It’s gross for a 21 year old to have sex with what he allegedly thought was an 18 year old?

 

Do you watch DiCaprio movies?  Dude is banging just legal women on the reg in his 40’s. 
 

 

I think it's different when they're adults. This girl was a kid. 

 

It's different if she lied about being in college, but if she told him she was in high school that's sketchy to me. 

[Rico]

Without going thru this monster thread..

I find it very hard to believe that Kim Pegula would stand for any of this if there was anything concrete to it. I don't know her status right now, none of my business, but I think at the very least her family knows where she stands & would agree with her take. So I will support the Bills 100% on this, and I will support the Punt God as long as he is a Bill.

 

[Bob in STL]

5 minutes ago, SCBills said:

They aren’t dug in because he’s a punter.

 

They are dug in because, as of now, they believe him and he’s part of the team. 

 

They backed up Shady.  They backed up Dodson. 
 

They are loyal to their players and have their backs.

 

I respect tf out of that, especially given modern day society.  If they lose trust in Araiza and things change, I’m sure they will reverse course, but I highly doubt they will buckle to public pressure if they believe the facts are on their side.  
 

And players see that too… like it or not, it’s part of the process/culture. 
 

 

Agree.  These "he is just a punter" comments are crazy.   Right now they probably believe he is innocent.  That could change.  This media explosion might be too much for the team to deal with.