Earlier today, NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith made it known that, if the NFL were handling the HGH testing issue like Major League Baseball, the NFL would have implemented HGH testing before MLB.
The NFL disagrees.
“This is a continuation of the union’s strategy to delay, deny, and distract,” senior V.P. Adolpho Birch said in a statement issued by the league office. “The facts are that we have already agreed to third-party arbitration, have always required that violations be supported with full and accurate documentation, and have always supported comprehensive player appeal rights. What is missing from the MLB agreement is a population study. Apparently, baseball players know that the test for HGH is reliable, valid, and scientifically sound. If the NFLPA had adopted the same position as the MLB players, we would already be well on our way to eliminating the threat of HGH from our game.”
So the NFL and the NFLPA finally agree on something regarding HGH testing. They both believe that HGH testing would be in place for pro football if the other side had behaved more like its corresponding party in baseball.