Robert Mathis is sorry that he’s going to miss four games for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs.
But when he balances that against the joy of his new daughter, he’s able to sleep at night.
Mathis said the suspension stemmed from his use of Clomid, which he took because of “fertility challenges.” But they overcame those, and his daughter Brielle was born July 19.
“The timing was wrong,” Mathis said, via Mike Wells of ESPN.com. “I cost my team on the professional level. Personal level, I have a lifetime worth of smiles and kisses. I try to learn from it and move forward.”
But beyond the family issues, there was skepticism about Mathis going from 8.0 sacks to 19.5 last year, and Mathis said he doesn’t shy away from those questions. But with a baby girl in his arms, they matter less.
“I apologized for the professional side of it, the personal side of it. I have no regrets at all,” he said. “I look at my baby’s face in my phone every day and I have no regrets. . . . I know how people are going to react, know what people are going to say coming off a season like last year. That’s human nature. . . .
"(Brielle) looks at me and sees no wrong. She don’t know how she got here, she doesn’t care how she got here. She knows she’s here and feed me. That’s my job and that’s going to be my job for the next 18 years or however long it takes, football will be long gone. She’ll be here.”
And after the first four games, Mathis will be back with the Colts.