ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Marcell Dareus will miss the season opener after being suspended without pay by the NFL for violating the league's substance abuse policy. The suspension means the two-time Pro Bowl selection will miss Buffalo's home game against Indianapolis on Sept. 13.

The punishment stems from Dareus being arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia after being stopped by Alabama State Police on May 5. Dareus avoided trial, during which he would have faced felony drug charges, by agreeing to enter an NFL substance abuse program in August.

In Other NFL News:

— A judge in New Jersey has dismissed domestic violence charges against Ray Rice, who was captured by a surveillance camera knocking his then-fiancee unconscious in a hotel elevator. His attorney had described what happened in February 2014 as "little more than a misunderstanding." Judge Michael Donio dismissed the charges after the Atlantic County prosecutor told him the former Baltimore Ravens running back had completed the terms of his pretrial intervention. Under terms of the program, Rice paid $125 in fines and received anger management counseling.

— Hundreds of former players have filed a lawsuit against the NFL. The players claim all 32 teams, their doctors, trainers and medical staffs obtained and provided painkillers to players —often illegally — as part of a decades-long conspiracy to keep them on the field without regard for their long-term health. The lawsuit reprises some of the allegations made in a federal lawsuit last year on behalf of 1,300 former players against the NFL. That complaint was filed in May 2014 and dismissed in December by a judge who wrote that the collective bargaining agreement was the appropriate forum to resolve such claims.

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