Tampa Bay, FL

The NFL has suspended Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib four games for using banned substance Adderall.

Talib said he will not appeal the ban, which starts Sunday when the Bucs take on the Kansas City Chiefs. He will be eligible to return to the Buccaneers' active roster on November 5.

"Around the beginning of training camp, I made a mistake by taking an Adderall pill without a prescription," Talib said in a statement.

"This is especially regrettable because, for the past several months, with Coach Schiano's help, I've worked very hard to improve myself -- professionally and personally -- as a player and a man. I am truly sorry to my teammates, coaches and Buccaneers fans, and I'm disappointed in myself," he added.

Talib promised to keep himself in football shape during the suspension to be ready to help the Bucs in the second half of the season.

Bucs head coach Greg Schiano placed Talib on the reserve/suspended list and promoted defensive end Markus White to the 53-man roster from the team's practice squad.

"I have spoken with Aqib, and he knows that he made a poor decision that let our team down," Schiano said. "Certainly, other players will have the opportunity to step up while he serves this suspension."

The suspension was the second for Talib, who was also suspended without pay for the 2010 regular-season opener and also fined one additional game check for violating the league's personal conduct policy.

That discipline stemmed from an altercation with a St. Petersburg cab driver during training camp in August 2009.

 

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