NFL and NFLPA say Eric Reid was not targeted for drug tests
The NFL and NFLPA say they've concluded that Eric Reid was not unfairly targeted for excessive drug testing. (Mike McCarn/Associated Press) (Mike Mccarn/AP)By Mark MaskeJanuary 9 at 11:14 AM
The NFL and the NFL Players Association say they’ve concluded that Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid was not unfairly targeted for excessive drug testing, based on a report that the league and union ordered from the independent administrator of their collectively bargained drug program.
“There is no evidence of targeting or any other impropriety with respect to his selection for testing,” the NFL and NFLPA said in a joint written statement issued Wednesday.
Reid had said he was being selected too often for what is, under the terms of the policy, random testing. Reid has suggested that the number of times he was tested might be related to his protests during the national anthem.
“The report also demonstrates that Mr. Reid’s tests were randomly generated via computer algorithm and that his selection for testing was normal when compared with the number of tests players were randomly selected for throughout the league during the time that he was on an active roster,” the statement by the league and union said.
The sport’s drug programs are jointly administered by the NFL and NLFPA and are overseen by John Lombardo. Last month, the league and union requested the report by Lombardo after Reid made his allegations.
Reid said last month on social media that he’d been tested seven times over a span of 11 weeks with the Panthers.
“That has to be statistically impossible,” Reid said, according to video posted at the time by Sports Illustrated. “I’m not a mathematician, but there’s no way that’s random.”
According to one person familiar with the report delivered to the league and union, the report concludes that Reid was not tested as many times as he asserted publicly.
NFL players are subject to two separate drug policies, a policy on banned performance-enhancing substances and a substance abuse policy. A player faces one mandatory test annually under each policy. Additionally, 10 players on each team are chosen randomly via computer each week during the preseason, regular season and postseason to be tested for performance-enhancing substances.
Reid continued his protests, aimed at bringing attention to racial inequality and police treatment of African-Americans, this season while with the Panthers. He previously protested alongside quarterback Colin Kaepernick while both were with the San Francisco 49ers. Kaepernick, who has been out of the NFL the past two seasons, and Reid have filed collusion grievances accusing the league and teams of improperly conspiring to keep them out of the NFL.
The league prevailed in a separate grievance by Reid and the NFLPA alleging that the Cincinnati Bengals acted improperly when they asked Reid about his protests during a free agent visit last offseason. The arbitrator ruled that the Bengals did not violate the CBA and acted within their rights.
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