Ten NFL players could be facing a fine and one a suspension, according to a Yahoo! Sports report, for testing positive for recreational drugs after they were apparently promised by NFL Players’ Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith that there would be no drug testing for 30 days after the end of the this summer’s lockout.
11 NFL Players To Be Disciplined For Drug Use During Lockout, According To Report
Eleven players could be facing discipline after testing positive for drugs after the lockout, according to a report.
According to Adam Schefter, two of the players who tested positive were Redskins tight end Fred Davis and offensive tackle Trent Williams. In the Yahoo! report, Jason Cole, who didn't name the players who tested positive, said one of the eleven players had tested positive before, and could therefore face a suspension. The other players would only be fined if the report is accurate.
The blame for this incident falls on Smith, who told players they wouldn’t have to worry about drug tests for 30 days, only to find that the NFL began drug-testing plays on the second day of training camp. Here’s a quote from a player rep about it:
“I told De that this was a concern of a number of players after the lockout ended and he said, ‘I got you covered,’ ” one of the player reps said. “I went back and told the players, ‘Look, whatever it is you’ve been doing, you need to stop and be ready, but that we would probably have a 30-day grace period before the league started testing.
“Then we get to camp and [the league is] testing us on Day 2. Guys are looking at me like I don’t know what I’m talking about. It was embarrassing. I called the union and I was told there were a lot of things that fell through the cracks at the last minute.”
It’s long been no mystery that many professional athletes use drugs in the offseason -- Josh Howard even openly admitted it -- so any shock and awe at this revelation would come from a place of naiveté, but it’s still significant that the NFLPA couldn’t keep its promises to players. Fans should stop asking the NBA players union to take its cues from the NFL situation, because this deal gets worse the more we hear about it.
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