Report: Bills to pursue contract extension with Marcell Dareus

Marcell Dareus will be suspended for the first game of the 2015 season after violating the NFL's substance abuse policy, but that won't stop the Buffalo Bills from opening negotiations on a long-term deal.

The club is looking to sign the standout defensive tackle to a contract extension and will hope to do so before training camp opens later this summer, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

Selected by the Bills with the third-overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, Dareus has been quick to emerge as one of the league's most productive interior defensive lineman through his first four seasons.

The 25-year-old has appeared in 63 games over that span, starting in all but three while recording 28.5 sacks.

With Dareus heading into the final year of his rookie contract, a fifth-year option the team exercised last spring, the Bills would be wise to ensure he receives a new contract long before he has the opportunity to hit the free-agent market.