At a time when athletes who accomplish extraordinary things are instantly suspected of using performance-enhancing drugs, Adrian Peterson is coming off one of the most extraordinary seasons in NFL history, bouncing back from a major knee injury to rush for more than 2,000 yards and win the MVP. So Peterson knows there are some who suspect him of being dirty.
“I take it as a compliment when I hear people say things like that,” Peterson told reporters today. “It shows how blessed I am.”
Peterson wants to make clear, however, that he has never used human growth hormone and is glad the NFL and the players’ union are finally coming together to work out a plan for testing players for HGH.
“I like it. I love it,” Peterson said of HGH testing. “To be honest with you, I’ve been hoping that they did this a long time ago. . . . I’m all natural. I work hard. So for me personally, everybody will know I’m clean as a whistle.”
Peterson also believes, however, that some players are using HGH and will get busted when the league starts testing.
“It will bring some guys to the forefront and be like, hey, I guess this is how this guy has been performing so well,” Peterson said.
Peterson is surely right that some players are using HGH. And the players who are clean will benefit from weeding out the players who are cheating.