Tamba Hali has been suspended for the first game of the season for a violation of the league’s substance abuse policy. Matt Ryan’s life just became a little easier in week one, and now the Chiefs will have to deal with the combination of Julio Jones and Roddy White without their best pass rusher.

Second year players Justin Houston and Andy Studebaker need to step up, and Derrick Johnson, who has been one of the best all-around inside linebackers in the NFL, may have to play a bigger role in going after the passer.

Hali is eligible to return immediately after the first game, and can participate fully in the preseason games. The releases have not indicated the reason for the suspension. It is doubtful that it is steroids, which have garnered a four-game suspension in the past. It could be that he was part of a diversion program on alcohol, like Rey Malauga and other players in the past. At least publicly, though, there has not been news of a Tamba Hali arrest related to alcohol or drugs.

[UPDATE: Kent Babb of the Kansas City Star says "NFL spokesman Greg Aiello tells me that Hali's situation/suspension is unique and isn't defined specifically by the substance policy." Don't know what that means exactly, but I'm pretty sure it's not something performance-enhancing outlined by the league policy]

[photo via US Presswire]