September 3, 2007
A Coach Violates The NFL Substance Abuse Policy?
The NFL has suspended Wade Wilson for violating the league substance abuse policy. That might have made sense 10 years ago when Wilson was a player in the league; but at the moment, he is the quarterbacks coach for the Cowboys. Maybe it’s obvious to you how some kind of performance enhancing substance can make one into a better quarterbacks coach, but it isn’t to me. Wilson’s statement was that he took these banned substances to improve his quality of life because he suffers from diabetes. That sort of makes sense except he allegedly got the “stuff” from one of those Internet pharmaceutical purveyors that are often under investigation and not his regular physician who has to be knowledgeable of and part of the treatment regimen for Wilson’s diabetes. Something tells me there’s more to this than meets the eye.
Actually, I think the best thing Wade Wilson can do as the Cowboys’ quarterbacks coach is to find a way to channel the essence of Roger Staubach into Tony Romo. That would probably involve something like a séance or some kind of preternatural event like a Vulcan mind-meld. That may be a huge performance enhancer for the Cowboys’ quarterbacks but probably would not violate the substance abuse policy.
Since I mentioned Tony Romo and Roger Staubach above, that prompts me to give you my list of guys who are overrated going into the 2007 season. In no particular order, consider:
Tony Romo: He had some good games and he had some bad games. That’s what rookie quarterbacks do. But for some reason folks think he’s the next coming of Roger Staubach. Maybe he is, but I haven’t seen anything close to that yet.
Willie McGinnest: He’s been in the league forever and will certainly get some support for Hall of Fame status. But he has a back injury at the moment and has lost more than just a single step. I suspect the tank is empty no matter how much savvy and guts he brings to the game.
Edgerrin James: Last year was a big improvement for him in Arizona but still he averaged a less-than-robust 3.2 yards per carry. Amazingly, he was really good when defenses had to worry about Manning to Harrison et. al. thereby allowing him room to operate. His numbers will improve only if Matt Leinart’s numbers improve.
Antwaan Randle-El: He got a $30M contract with about $15M guaranteed. He’s a #3 receiver and a kick returner, and he’s not nearly the best #3 receiver or kick returner in the league. Oh, I forgot, he gives the Redskins the ability to run a gadget pass play about three times a year. So that’s what makes him so valuable…
Chad Pennington: Since he plays in NYC, the hype surrounding him is excessive. He is a good quarterback and that’s about it. Last year when the Jets were the Cinderella team in the league finding a way to the playoffs after a miserable 2005 season, Chad Pennington threw 17 TDs and 16 INTs. The Jets won almost in spite of him.
When Tim Couch said that he had taken HGH under a doctor’s supervision for a week as part of a rehab process for shoulder surgery, he may have opened Pandora’s Box. I understand that HGH can be therapeutic and perhaps even palliative in a variety of rehab and recovery situations; I also know it can be used in order to “get big”. And the NFL has to be mindful of a simple historical statistic I ran across recently:
In 1983, there were 17 players in the NFL who weighed more than 300 lbs.
In training camp for the 2007 season, there were more than 500 players and player-aspirants who weighed more than 300 lbs.
That is circumstantial evidence of the highest order, but it is just possible that more than a couple of those 500 people who weighed more than 300 lbs got to that size with some “assistance” other than “good nutrition”. The NFL doesn’t need a substance abuse scandal akin to what has hit track and field and baseball and pro wrestling.
And speaking of pro wrestling, the WWE has suspended 10 of its performers for violations of what it calls its “wellness policy”. That phrase has to be on any list of the top five “Blatant Euphemisms for 2007”. According to an AP report, the WWE received information from the DA’s office in Albany NY that arose from “ongoing activities” in that DA’s office. In the WWE, a first violation of the “wellness policy” calls for a 30-day suspension without pay; a second violation brings a 60-day suspension without pay; a third violation results in “separation”. WWE did not release the list of names because that is part of its “wellness policy” at the moment but did announce that it would release names of violators starting November 1 of this year.
According to Internet reports, several of the suspended wrestlers are accused of taking anastrozole, which is not a steroid but is something that will counter the growth of female breast tissue - - and that is one of the side effects of prolonged use of anabolic steroids. I can understand why a pro wrestler would want to look big and muscular and I can certainly understand that his image as a tough guy would not be enhanced if he started to grow breasts. So all of that is sort of logical. But it does raise another question:
Are the lady wrestlers in the WWE taking anabolic steroids without taking anastrozole?
Just asking …
In case you are a fan of the WWE and fear that the suspension of 10 performers will put the company under, the reports are that WWE has 160 wrestlers under contract. I’d be a tad skeptical that only 6% of the pro wrestlers are taking some kind of anabolic steroids but that’s the extent of the problem at the moment. And so the WWE looks as if it can continue to fill up several hours a week of TV time and stage monthly pay-per-view events.
Finally, here’s a comment from Greg Cote in yesterday’s Miami Herald:
“Tonight is Fan Appreciation Night at Tropical Park for local pro soccer team Miami FC. The club is optimistic that both fans will attend.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports…
