One of the hottest issue in football right now is the allege involvement of its two linebackers in steroid use. A report from a website, nfldraftbible.com stated that Clay Mathews and Brian Cushing of USC tested positive for steroids in the NFL Combine last February. The report just mentioned that their sources of information were some of the players in the league and one NFL team. The site did not elaborate what particular steroid or banned substance two got the positive result. It was not clear when the test was conducted.

The news immediately got the attention of most sportswriter covering NFL. Some could not believe that the 2 players used performance enhancing drugs. Moreover, the league and the coach of USC already made reactions on the report. This may put the site into legal problem if they would not be able to prove their report. This is also an interesting issue to keep an eye on. How long can this website stick to its news report? Should they retract their report which may affect their credibility or stick to their story and provide more information on the issue?

Another website already reported that the VP/General Counsel of Athletes First, Mark Humenik sent an email to the nfldraftbible website which is considered as a protest on the news. Humenik stated in his email that it is the NFL policy not to disclose information of any drug tests which are subject to fines. A portion of the email as provided by the ninersnation.com, shows what would be the next possible action of the league.

“Further, neither Clay nor our office has received notification of any positive test, whether for steroids or any banned substance. I also have been informed by an attorney at the NFL League Office that they have not received notification from the Independent Administrator of any Draft-eligible players testing positive for steroids during the pre-employment drug testing conducted at this year’s Combine, and likewise, that they have not informed the member NFL clubs of any drug testing results. Govern yourself accordingly.”

Pete Carroll, the USC coach, made a strong statement on the issue of his two linebackers Mathews and Cushing. He even called the NFL Testing Office and requested to make a confirmation that his two players did not tested positive for steroids. “That was really unfathomable that (the report) came out. It’s irresponsible,” Carroll said. “I talked to the group that does the testing. There are no results like that. We even had a couple calls from NFL teams today,” Carroll said.

According to Carroll, Clay Mathews and Brian Cushing have never been in that situation before. “Things like that cause a real frenzy. The truth is they already passed the deadline for those results,” he added.

The coach vouched for the character of his two players and insist that these rumors are absolutely false. “If they were found positive, Clay and Cush would have been notified three weeks ago, which they weren’t and all of the NFL teams would have been notified too, which they weren’t,” the coach said.

He said that this issue is a major example of irresponsible reporting, and the site that published this report should be ashamed of themselves.

On the other hand, if the report on these linebackers was true, their inclusion in the draft will be affected. Of course teams would not want to hire players with steroids on their names.

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