The feelings of the Buffalo Bills head coach mirrored those of the organization in a team statement a day earlier concerning the four-game suspension of Marcell Dareus.
Buffalo Bills Insider Chris Brown gives the details about the Bills’ head coach concerning the suspended linebacker. Here is his report:
It’d be hard to blame Bills head coach Rex Ryan. His top interior defensive lineman Marcell Dareus earned a four-game league-imposed suspension due to a missed drug test. The NFL considers those positive tests and the league’s punishment is automatic. Even though Ryan knew this suspension was coming a couple of days ago it didn’t diminish his aggravation Wednesday when he addressed the media.
“I’m frustrated and disappointed, as is everybody in this organization,” said Ryan. “Every teammate from top to bottom. And I’m sure fans are feeling the same way. We all know the kind of player that Marcell is and you know that Marcell is a good person too, but he’s got to make better choices and understand that it affects the whole football team and not just himself.”
In a team statement the Bills expressed how disappointing it was that Dareus had put himself first with his lack of action regarding the drug test he missed. Dareus however, doesn’t consider himself a ‘me first’ guy.
“I put myself last for the most part, but I’m a big-hearted person,” Dareus said. “I never put myself first. You watch me play you’ll see that. I sacrifice myself for my family. It’s not about me, but everyone makes dumb decisions. Nobody is perfect, but at the same time I’ve got to continue to work and move forward. We can say anything, but you’ll all see when I get back.”
Once the Bills reach Week 1 of the regular season Dareus will have to leave the club for a month. He won’t be able to have contact with coaches or spend any time at the team’s training facility in Orchard Park.
And as much as Ryan assured that the team will have a plan in place for Dareus while he’s away from the team, the decisions made by the Pro Bowl defensive tackle are ultimately his and his alone.
“We’ll formulate a plan for him when he’s suspended,” Ryan said. “But I think it comes down, most of the time, regardless of the help that you provide, it comes down to the choices of the individual. Again I’m not preaching, I’m not saying anybody’s perfect. Trust me, I’m not. But you have to make better decisions and Marcell has to. You can see I’m frustrated, I really am. Obviously he’s one of our best players, you know if not the best, he’s right there and it’s going to hurt this team.”
Dareus was solemn as he spoke with the media Wednesday. He appears to recognize how much his failure to take the drug test has impacted the fortunes of his team. The defensive tackle also realizes that with his history of previous off the field incidents he can’t convince anyone that he’ll be on the straight and narrow moving forward with his words.
“I really don’t have much to say,” he said. “Words don’t mean anything now. It’s all action. That’s all I’m going to do. I’m going to come back and do the best I can. I’ve apologized to my team, my family, my kids and who I am and who I’m working to be. I apologized to Terry (Pegula), Rex and everyone else. Everyone said they had my back and would stand by me. At the same time my words don’t mean anything now. It’s all about action.”
Despite his own frustration Ryan believes that Dareus does care about his career and the success of the club.
“I think that he cares a great deal. This situation might be that much different than some other guys that I’ve had, but he has to make those decisions,” Ryan said. “I understand that there are some people that are going to be cynical of him. There are some people that will never give him the benefit of the doubt anymore, but for the majority of people it’s more of a show me thing. I believe that moving forward that this young man will learn from this experience and become a better person for it.”
“I have to figure it out,” he said. “I can say whatever. Whatever I tell you really doesn’t mean anything. I’ll show you rather than tell you. Talk is cheap.”