Does the United States Government Turn a Blind Eye to Steroids and Crimes in the NFL?
I recently had a conversation with a friend the other day about how no one really ever gets busted for steroids in football. The more and more I think about it my friend is right. The United States Government has went after Major League Baseball, World Wrestling Entertainment and even the world of Mixed Martial Arts. Never once has anyone brought up that their might be a steroid problem. If there is a problem, then the U.S. government might be looking the other way. In 2007, the last year I could find the NFL was the highest grossing sport in the world raking in $6.3 Billion that year. Think about the obvious. We always see the lists of every baseball player that’s violated the steroid policy but why don’t we see a list of football players that have violated the NFL’s steroid policy? It’s quite simple. The U.S. government, especially the right wing receives a lot of political donations from the NFL that they may be using to fund campaigns or other political interests. Lets think about this as well. Anytime baseball, basketball or hockey have been on strike the government sits back and lets it play out. However the last time the NFL was in danger of not having a season the government rushed right in and made sure there was federal mediator to listen to both sides.
To my knowledge the NFL has never suspended or banned anyone for steroid use but here is a list of people who have been alleged steroid users. The list includes Bill Romanowski, Brian Cushing, Shawne Merriman, Lyle Alzado, Steve Courson, Dana Stubblefield, and Todd Sauerbrun. If this doesn’t mean anything remember Super Bowl 38 between the Patriots and Panthers? A couple of years following that game, many Panthers admitted to taking steroids or PED’s a week before the game to get an advantage over New England. Were any of those players punished? No they were not.
Speaking of punishment, look the crime rates in the NFL. Right now they have to be highest out of any sport in America. Take a look at Michael Vick, Plaxico Burress and even the latest incident with Josh Brent. If an average citizen would have committed those crimes they would have faced 10 to 15 years in prison, if not more. Look at Dante Stallworth. He killed a pedestrian while driving drunk and all got was 30 days in the county jail, plus 1,000 hours of community service, 2 years of community control, and 8 years probation. You call that justice?
Even retired Hall of Fame players have gotten off easy and I am talking about O.J. Simpson. Everyone knows he killed his wife and his wife’s friend. All the evidence was there and it got turned into a racial issue. Simpson was found innocent but lost in the civil suits to both the Brown and Goldman families. You can credit Simpsons attorney or the stupidity of the judge but if anyone it else it would have been a clear cut case and the person would have been sentenced to life in the prison.
Lastly, how can you forget the New Orleans Saints Bounty Scandal. There was evidence of wiretapping which illegal by federal law and nothing was done. Gregg Williams is scapegoat for all of this as all the players suspensions were overturned by an appeals committee. Then there is Sean Payton who was suspended for this entire season. How was he rewarded? He received a five-year contract extension. The Saints can continue to miss the playoffs and I would be happy. They need to suffer for a long time after the crap they pulled but it’s karma that’s doing it, not the government or league officials.
Given all these examples, if you can’t see it then you probably never will. The NFL is full of crooks, criminals, thugs and steroid junkies. There are a select few in the game that are great people and make the sport look good but you hardly ever see those names get recognition. The United States government protects the NFL because it’s a huge moneymaker and it employs a lot of people and donates a lot to political funds. They also realize if there was a scandal in the NFL that uncovered it would be disastrous.
It goes back to the 2007 list of top grossing sports and look who was at the top
1- The National Football League – $6.3 Billion
2- Major League Baseball – $6.0 Billion
3- The National Basketball Association – $4.0 Billion
4- The Premier League – $3.05 Billion
5- National Hockey League – $2.56 Billion
