Matt Araiza won’t be punting in Mexico after all.
Galgos de Tijuana (Tijuana Greyhounds) of the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional (LFA) announced that they signed Araiza, and the team’s coach said Araiza was practicing with them. But Araiza’s agent said he never signed a contract and does not intend to play for the team in Mexico.
The Tijuana team’s head coach, Ricardo Licona, told Fox 5 in San Diego that Araiza is expecting to get an opportunity in the NFL.
That would require an NFL team to be willing to give Araiza a second chance after the Bills cut him during the preseason last year after news broke that he was accused of raping a 17-year-old girl while he was playing at San Diego State. Prosecutors declined to press criminal charges, but Araiza is still facing a civil lawsuit in the matter.
Araiza won the Ray Guy Award as the best punter in college football in 2021, and the Bills drafted him in 2022. The Bills initially announced that Araiza had won their punting job but then released him over the outcry from the rape case.