Many eyebrows were raised upon hearing of the news that Bill Romanowski was interviewed by the Washington Redskins for the position of strength and conditioning coach. Known for a notorious 16-year career, Romanowski is perhaps one of the biggest bad boys in the history of the league, often caught in the middle of scandals and controversies during his time. Nevertheless, despite all his delinquency and bad behavior whether rumored or true, Romanowski may just be perfect for the job as it is well-known that only a few professional athletes can match his extensive workout routines. The reason why Romanowski lasted so long and successfully in the NFL even when bombarded with scandal after scandal is his extreme commitment to keeping physically fit and maintaining his body. Romanowski did intense stretching routines and endured extreme levels of pain just to make sure he could play in the field at optimal strength every Sunday.

In addition to strict workout routines, Romanowski also took a lot of supplements and took diet and nutrition to the extreme. Romanowski even had a special pill box that he showed in a special television feature years ago. The case was divided into various squares, which held and separated the different supplements and pills he took every morning, which must have exceeded 20 kinds. Romanowski may be nasty and vicious but his commitment to sacrifice more than most players would be willing to just to stay on top of the game is a significantly positive point that can benefit the Redskins.

The biggest and hardest hurdle, however, is the fact that Romanowski used steroids in the past. This is harder to justify than any other scandal linked to him as the ethical and moral implications taint his credibility to be a fitting coach.

Romanowski admitted to using steroids and human growth hormones during his career when he appeared in 60 Minutes in 2005. He added that the drugs were supplied to him by Victor Conte, the infamous guy behind the BALCO scandal. If Romanowski does become the strength and conditioning coach of the Washington Redskins, he will no doubt face a lot of criticism from fans and the media but they may eventually get over it.

Compared to baseball fans, NFL fans are less wary or concerned about whether players use steroids or not. Football players are expected to be enormous in size and part of the entertainment is seeing them beat each other up in the field sixteen times a year, excluding the preseason and the playoffs.

Even with rumors of rampant steroid use within the league, the NFL is doing all that it can to discourage steroid use. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell strengthened the league’s drug policy in 2007 by including more frequent drug testing and harsher penalties; those who test positive for the first time will be suspended for one-fourth of the season (or four games).

Perhaps, what Bill Romanowski can do is to learn from his experience with steroids, both good and bad, and educate current players about the negative long term effects of the drug to discourage players from using it. Maybe then he would make an awesome strength and conditioning coach.

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