Phidarian Mathis Suspended Three Games For Violating NFL Substance Abuse

Bills DT Phidarian Mathis Suspended Three Games for Substance Abuse Policy Violation

The Buffalo Bills will open the 2026 regular season without defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis, who has been suspended for the first three games of the season for violating the NFL's substances of abuse policy. The league announced the discipline on Friday, August 14.

According to a league source, the suspension stems from an alcohol-related incident that occurred in spring 2025, and the 2022 second-round draft pick by Washington was with the New York Jets at the time of the incident.

More than a year has passed since that incident, which occurred while Mathis was a member of the New York Jets.

Suspension Timeline

Mathis will not be sidelined immediately. He is eligible to play in the preseason, and his suspension will begin Aug. 30, with eligibility to rejoin the active roster Sept. 28, at the start of Week 4. That means Mathis will miss Buffalo's first three games of the regular season against the Houston Texans (Week 1, away), plus two consecutive home games against the Detroit Lions (Thursday Night Football, Week 2) and Los Angeles Chargers (Week 3).

Impact on Bills' Defensive Line

The suspension creates a notable void along Buffalo's interior defensive front. The move leaves the Bills without a bona fide one-tech in-house and available to start the regular season. Per the ESPN roster, the current defensive line group includes Tommy Akingbesote, DeWayne Carter, Mike Danna, and Cade Denhoff — leaving Carter, a 2024 third-round pick, as a key name to watch. Mathis is competing for one of the final roster spots along the Bills defensive line with players including 2024 third-round pick DeWayne Carter, who missed all of last season with a torn Achilles.

If Mathis fails to secure a 53-man roster spot before the suspension takes effect, he would likely fit on the practice squad, having played in six regular-season games and one playoff game for the Bills last season.

Background

Listed at 6-foot-4 and 318 pounds, the 27-year-old Mathis was drafted out of Alabama in the second round by the Washington Commanders in 2022, and played 23 games in three seasons for Washington, never starting an NFL game. He is now with Buffalo on a one-year contract worth $1.195 million overall after signing with the team last fall.

This marks a familiar situation for Buffalo's front office. The Bills had to navigate similar situations last year at this time, with defensive end Michael Hoecht and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi both suspended for the first six games of the 2025 season. The suspension came the same week Buffalo opened its preseason slate with a 29-14 win over Carolina.