The lawyer representing Vikings defensive tackles Pat and Kevin Williams tells Sean Jensen of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that a lawsuit on behalf of the two Pro Bowlers will be filed on Wednesday.
“Within the next 24 hours, the players will take proactive steps to correct a harm suffered as a result of actions by the league and its arbitrary and inequitable administration of the program,” said Peter Ginsberg of ghe New York office of Crowell and Moring, an international law firm. “Neither Pat nor Kevin has ever used steroids and do not warrant this kind of treatment.”
Ginsberg told Jensen that he represents several players in this matter, but Ginsberg would not identify any of the others.
This disclosure raises the possibility that even more StarCaps suspensions are in the pipeline.
Ginsberg also took aim at the league’s defense of the suspensions, which was handled via a Tuesday conference call by Adolpho Birch, the NFL’s V.P. of Law & Labor Policy.
“Adolpho Birch is fictionalizing in fact what occurred,” Ginsberg said. “He knew about Bumetanide and StarCaps. Instead of notifying the Food and Drug Administration, he banned NFL officials from endorsing in a commercial setting the manufacturer of the product.
“All he cared about was the commercial aspect of the league. He did not care — and in fact showed a gross disregard — for the health and safety of players.”
Attacking the perceived purpose of the steroids policy, Ginsberg asserted that the “program isn’t designed to protect the players. It’s not designed to protect the integrity of the game. It’s designed to placate politicians and protect the image of the league.”
It’s hard to disagree with that, because we are having a very hard time getting past the simple fact that certain segments of the league office knew that StarCaps contained Bumetanide, but made no specific effort to ensure that the players had this information as well.
If the goal at any level of the steroids policy is to protect players, then the players should have been told specifically and unequivocally that taking StarCaps meant ingesting a banned substance that also is a potent brand of federally-regulated medication.
We’ve got a theory as to one of the deeper reasons for this current brouhaha, and several of the commenters already have alluded to it. We’ll address it directly in the morning.
WILLIAMS WALL LAWSUIT COMING WEDNESDAY
Posted by Mike Florio on December 2, 2008, 11:12 PM EST
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29 Responses to “WILLIAMS WALL LAWSUIT COMING WEDNESDAY”
In the morning ??????????
That’s pretty high school girlish of you.
I can understand why they want to try to avoid a suspension and why they feel it hurts their image but what good does it really do? So you push back the suspension, when do you serve it? During the playoffs? Next year? Not at all (would be nice but I just can’t see it happening )? Just man up, you took something and even though its not a steroid it is a banned substance, and yes the NFL should have told you it was in StarCaps but they didn’t, lets just get it over with and move on.
Yeah we know it’s a bargaining chip. But please, if it means no “Williams Wall,” let it rest. No one really believes that the Vikes deserve a spot in the playoffs.
Well I will go ahead and ruin the surprise for everyone as to the ulterior motive behind this particular group of suspensions…
Coming soon: The “NFL-Approved” Supplements List.
You know that little iridescent NFL logo you get on your team apparel that lets you know that you paid top-dollar for an *authentic* item? Well it will soon be found on many supplements, and players will be herded into using ONLY products from the sanctioned list. And how will products be able to make the list, you aks?
The Public answer: “Through a thorough scientific process of investigation and study aimed at ensuring the safety of those who use the product.”
The real answer: “Money paid to the NFL to secure a spot on the list.”
The long-term effect: That lowly 3.5% inflation figure that the government publishes each year gets a little further from the truth. And teams that struggle to sell out games wonder why people elect not to spend eight hours’ worth of wages on a three-hour entertainment event.
what is there to argue ??…the NFL said in December of 2006 it sent out two notifications about StarCaps
ne to NFL club presidents,general managers and head athletic trainers and the second to NFLPA executive Stacy Robinson ,who oversees the steroid policy for the union.The letter ,according to the league,advised that STARCAPS had been added to the list of prohibited dietary supplement companies…and the section of the policy that states “If you take these products you do so AT YOUR OWN RISK ! for your own health and success in the league,we strongly encourage you to avoid use of supplements altogether,or at the very least to be extremely careful about what you choose to take. YOU and YOU alone are responsible for what goes into your body” is pretty cut and dry on WARNINGS to the players and their safety
Are we talking Eastern Standard Time? My Mountain Standard Time drags on then!
I remember when Shaun Rogers was suspended last year for using a diuretic, and one point of emphasis is that these guys are told not to take even COLD MEDICINE unless it’s explicitly approved by a team trainer. That’s why I saw the league sticking to their guns in this matter.
1) Am I the only one who thinks if the players involved played for the Cowboys, Dolphins, Colts, or Patriots, that they would have gotten off? I just find it odd that two teams with zero pull with the Commish are the teams getting punished.
2) Why is it is if the NFLPA gets involved on every little issue with players that something like this occurs that they arent screaming bloody murder? It seems they could be more proactive about the matter and press on the commish to the point he has to defer suspensions to next year following litigation.
3) Can the Vikes and Saints sue the league for lost revenue and overall team worth? It seems that just the pure team value alone would take a hit with the suspensions and likely playoff miss.
Some dude mentioned this as being a bargaining chip for the owners during the next labor negotiations.
Now get some sleep.
the leagues initiatives are obviously to gain bargaining power at the cba table…the PA has too much power as is, this is a great piece for the league to work with…
rofl….I’m not going to be able to sleep now LOL!!!
@goose08,
What the hell are you talking about?”the PA has too much power as is”, the NFLPA is the worst/weakest union in major American pro sports….. No guaranteed contracts, an arbitrary punishment system with the judge, jury, executioner, and appeals process running through one person, and owners like Ralph Wilson and Mike Brown leaving millions of dollars on the table because they don’t want to sell the naming rights to their stadiums, even if they did sell the naming rights, the players can’t touch that pot of the $$$$$$$….. If this is a bargining chip then the players should sue the NFL for some type of workplace misconduct…. I think the league is in cahoots with EAS to ensure that EAS is the only supplement company that the NFL players get pimped for….
Are you kidding me? The NFL Players Association has no power. They are by far the weakest of all sports players unions (which may be one reason why there hasn’t been a strike in 20 years)
The NFL is the only major sport without guaranteed contracts. How does the union sign off on that and still have the power.
As to the poster earlier who said that the Vikes don’t deserve a playoff spot: they are currently in first place in their division with four games to play, in large part due to their run defense led by the Williams wall.
If they don’t deserve to get in who does? The Bears or Pack…two teams they’ve beaten over the past four weeks?
These players didn’t cheat or take performance enhancing drugs. They got caught in a bureaucratic loophole that the league could have solved with one simple memo or email. Let the Vikes playoff fate be settled on the field…not in the commissioner’s office.
So Matt Jones is caught blowing felony lines of coke in his car and is still playing?!? These guys take a supplement that is supposedly legal because the manufacturer didn’t disclose what they put in it. Really? Really? This league is messed up if you ask me.
madden0001,
In 2006, Dolphins running back Ricky Williams was suspended for the WHOLE YEAR for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. Next year, his suspension was extended another 9 games for failing this policy yet again. Also that year, Patriots safety Rodney Harrison got suspended for 4 games for violating this same policy. In addition, Dallas Cowboys assistant coach Wade Wilson was suspended for 5 games for violating it. This year Patriots running back Kevin Faulk was suspended for 1 game for violating the same policy.
What are you smoking?
Da Bears, 3.5% is pretty accurate, its just compounded annually and thats the lie.
The NFL is now a Policed State and it is run by a communist Chairman Goodell and his blind henchmen.
And to you nobodys, I mean Bear turds and Cheese heads, there NEVER was any MEMO EVER sent to the teams about Star Caps containing a banned substance ( when the league knew about it but chose not to, this is their ignorance that the players ) . However, if Star Caps were not endorsed by EA sports supplements, then the league couldn’t profit off the sales. This is what this suit etc. is mainly about and you should be able to understand more about whats not been truthfully said soon enough. The league needs to broaden its horizons rather than stick its head in the sand and stick with old rules that are pretty much obsolete.
And to say that Mountain grown Garlic and Papaya isn’t legal? um, ok then.
It occurs to me that the league already has a list of acceptable products that players can use. The idea that the league knew and said nothing sounds to me like the players just don’t want to take responsibility for their actions.
Then again, maybe the league just wants one more way in which they can affect the outcomes of games by suspending players of teams that have no business being in a playoff run(Vikings) and let players play that the league wants to help(Falcons).
It’s all just a joke, let them all use steroids if they want. Helmet to helmet hits are ok too.
if there is a legal battle do the suspensions still take place, or is it akin to the appeal process? i need to know whether or not to dress kevin smith for fantasy this weekend.
With respect to this StarCaps issue, the NFL has acted no different than the “bad” players. The NFL requires full disclosure by its players but this incident is evidence that the NFL does not reciprocate.
The fact that Goodell has not distanced the NFL from the action taken by Dr. Lombardo implies that his actions were not rogue and the NFL was in cahoots with the plan to withhold information from the players – - information that would have kept “good” players out of trouble.
And the fact that the NFL has not yet pardoned these good players, makes the NFL more of a fiend.
@ dbvikes
i agree with your anger, however, the reason that matt jones isnt suspended yet, is because there has been no conviction in court. it is all “alleged” right now.
dont shoot the messenger, just letting you know.
“No one really believes that the Vikes deserve a spot in the playoffs.”
hesawinner
Don’t project your opinon onto everyone.
Let me guess, you’re not a Vikings fan?
Is there some list of criteria for who “deserves” a spot in the playoffs? Should the league check with you after the regular season ends?
There is a big difference between the Wlliams’ situation and Jones’s. What Jones “alllegedly” did is against the law and he knew it. I’m pretty sure cocaine is on the NFL’s list of banned substances. Just because they didn’t catch him with a drug test doesn’t mean it doesn’t count.
I really do find these suspensions a little puzzling. Its been made pretty clear players didn’t know the substance was in Starcaps, and some of them are even suing the manufacturer. This seems to be the best case yet where an independent appeals process would be a vast improvement over the current system.
And not to be a conspiracy theorist, but the timing of this is interesting to me. There’s been all this talk of the Lions losing the Thanksgiving day game because they’re terrible, and the NFL obviously does not want a team to go 0-16 because it would be bad for the image. Is Goodell trying to give the Lions the best chance of winning he can with these suspensions?
@ dbvikes
The NFL does not wait for a conviction. See Vick, Michael, Jones, Pac Man.
Is one of the tiebreakers whether or not a team “deserved” to be in the playoffs? Most obsurd comment ever posted, and thats saying a lot.
There is always a comparison to Matt Jones whenever a suspension about drugs comes up. I’m not a Jags fan, so maybe someone can correct me. It is my understanding that Jones was given a 3 game suspension for his coke incident. However, he is currently appealing his suspension, and after the appeal, he will have to serve his suspension (3 games, unless it is reduced). All of the StarCappers could choose to appeal their suspensions, and continue playing, just like Jones, however, if the appeal is heard prior to the end of the season, the suspensions will take place during the playoffs. For the Saints, they are pretty much done already. But Minnesota has defeated their only competition in the last few weeks, and the rest of the division is looking pretty week. I would take my chances that they can still win the division and have the “wall” back for the playoffs
The Vikings might deserve to be in the playoffs but the coach (Childress) sure as hell doesn’t!!
“FlorioHatesMyTeamMoreThanHeHatesYourTeamWaahhh says: All of the StarCappers could choose to appeal their suspensions, and continue playing, just like Jones…”
Uh … these suspensions are the result of the appeals. You can’t appeal twice.