Scott Campbell
09-08-2007, 10:21 AM
I prefer to assume the worst when it comes to the Bears.
From PFT:
POSTED 9:08 p.m. EDT, September 7, 2007
WILSON CLEARS THE AIR ON HGH SUSPENSION
On Friday afternoon, Michael David Smith posted an item (scroll down) regarding the explanation provided by Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson regarding his five-game suspension for admitted possession and/or use of one or more banned substances. Speaking to the Dallas Morning News, Wilson said that he used banned substances to treat complications from diabetes, including impotence.
As MDS wrote, "All snickering aside, it's understandable that erectile dysfunction is a medical problem that Wilson would feel uncomfortable discussing. But as anyone who's ever watched an NFL game on TV knows all too well, there is no shortage of pills that doctors can prescribe for the problem, and it's hard to have much sympathy for Wilson, who chose to go through an illegal Internet pharmacy instead."
That passage prompted Wilson to drop us a line on Friday afternoon. On Friday night, I spoke with Wilson by phone for 30 minutes, and he addressed all aspects of the situation.
Echoing some of the comments he made to the Dallas Morning News, Wilson said that he discovered an alternative therapy after seeing an item on 60 Minutes regarding the use of controversial treatments to improve the quality of life in persons who were feeling the effects of age and/or illness. Wilson admitted that he knew that the use of such substances is "controversial" in the medical community, but he says that he had no idea that it is illegal.
He explained that, while he was researching the topic on the Internet, an ad popped up (um . . . we won't go there) for the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center. The web site seemed legitimate, and he eventually found himself taking a physical and providing a blood sample in Chicago, and thereafter talking by phone to a doctor in Florida, whom Wilson assumed to be on the level.
Wilson took the physical in September 2006, and began using the substances he purchased in October 2006. He used a personal credit card in his own name to buy the substances, and had them delivered to his office in Halas Hall, the headquarters of the Chicago Bears.
He said that he stopped using the substances after a couple of months, because it was causing his blood-sugar levels to spin out of control.
Wilson's name thereafter surfaced as a purchaser of banned substances in the wake of a criminal investigation regarding the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center and Signature Pharmacy in Orlando. And Wilson says that, once he landed on the NFL's radar, he was up front and he came clean.
He went to the league office in New York without legal representation because, as he said, "I had nothing to hide." He explained that the NFL asked him to bring all bank statements, financial records, credit card statements, and phone records so that the NFL could determine whether he had purchased a banned substance for his own use, or whether he was buying it for others.
As Wilson explained it, the NFL was particularly concerned about the possibility that the Bears' Super Bowl season might have been undermined by the use of HGH or any other banned substance. Three years earlier, the Carolina Panthers made it to the Super Bowl, and later it was disclosed that Dr. James Shortt was providing steroids to several members of the team.
The league was satisfied, Wilson said, that there was no dissemination. And we believe him, because the objective evidence supports his position on this. If the league thought that Wilson had given a banned substance to a player, Wilson would have had two options -- identify the player(s), or not work in the NFL until he does so. Since no member of the Bears has been suspended for using HGH or any other banned substance given to him by Wilson, it's logical to conclude that any banned substances were for Wilson's own use.
As to our Friday afternoon story, Wilson said that he finds it to be inconsistent for us to suggest that he should have sought treatment for diabetes complications through normal medical channels, but to not raise similar concerns regarding Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, who admittedly used HGH as an alternative to standard rehab and treatment techniques. Though we appreciate Wilson's concern, the possibility that he was merely buying a banned substance for one or more players creates a greater degree of skepticism.
Wilson also didn't like our reference to "snickering" in connection with his impotence. "When Korey Stringer died," Wilson said, "was it something to snicker about? When is a medical condition something to snicker about? . . . It's not like I drove naked through a Wendy's."
He's right. Medical conditions aren't something to snicker about. But the reality is that it's human nature for folks to snicker about matters regarding non-functioning genitalia. It doesn't make it right. But that's the difference between the two situations, as best we can discern.
With all that said, we think Wilson is telling the truth. He was diagnosed with Type I diabetes more than 20 years ago, while playing in the NFL. He has struggled to control the condition. He wanted to improve his quality of life, and his actions were unrelated to the use of any banned substance for competitive means.
Though Wilson says he is a bit "miffed" by the extent of the penalty, he also says that he understands that the league needs to hold the coaches and front-office employees to a higher standard. We hope that the Cowboys and the NFL will allow him to put the episode behind him, and that he will be able to continue his career in pro football -- one which has covered more than 25 years as a player and as a coach.
From PFT:
POSTED 9:08 p.m. EDT, September 7, 2007
WILSON CLEARS THE AIR ON HGH SUSPENSION
On Friday afternoon, Michael David Smith posted an item (scroll down) regarding the explanation provided by Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson regarding his five-game suspension for admitted possession and/or use of one or more banned substances. Speaking to the Dallas Morning News, Wilson said that he used banned substances to treat complications from diabetes, including impotence.
As MDS wrote, "All snickering aside, it's understandable that erectile dysfunction is a medical problem that Wilson would feel uncomfortable discussing. But as anyone who's ever watched an NFL game on TV knows all too well, there is no shortage of pills that doctors can prescribe for the problem, and it's hard to have much sympathy for Wilson, who chose to go through an illegal Internet pharmacy instead."
That passage prompted Wilson to drop us a line on Friday afternoon. On Friday night, I spoke with Wilson by phone for 30 minutes, and he addressed all aspects of the situation.
Echoing some of the comments he made to the Dallas Morning News, Wilson said that he discovered an alternative therapy after seeing an item on 60 Minutes regarding the use of controversial treatments to improve the quality of life in persons who were feeling the effects of age and/or illness. Wilson admitted that he knew that the use of such substances is "controversial" in the medical community, but he says that he had no idea that it is illegal.
He explained that, while he was researching the topic on the Internet, an ad popped up (um . . . we won't go there) for the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center. The web site seemed legitimate, and he eventually found himself taking a physical and providing a blood sample in Chicago, and thereafter talking by phone to a doctor in Florida, whom Wilson assumed to be on the level.
Wilson took the physical in September 2006, and began using the substances he purchased in October 2006. He used a personal credit card in his own name to buy the substances, and had them delivered to his office in Halas Hall, the headquarters of the Chicago Bears.
He said that he stopped using the substances after a couple of months, because it was causing his blood-sugar levels to spin out of control.
Wilson's name thereafter surfaced as a purchaser of banned substances in the wake of a criminal investigation regarding the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center and Signature Pharmacy in Orlando. And Wilson says that, once he landed on the NFL's radar, he was up front and he came clean.
He went to the league office in New York without legal representation because, as he said, "I had nothing to hide." He explained that the NFL asked him to bring all bank statements, financial records, credit card statements, and phone records so that the NFL could determine whether he had purchased a banned substance for his own use, or whether he was buying it for others.
As Wilson explained it, the NFL was particularly concerned about the possibility that the Bears' Super Bowl season might have been undermined by the use of HGH or any other banned substance. Three years earlier, the Carolina Panthers made it to the Super Bowl, and later it was disclosed that Dr. James Shortt was providing steroids to several members of the team.
The league was satisfied, Wilson said, that there was no dissemination. And we believe him, because the objective evidence supports his position on this. If the league thought that Wilson had given a banned substance to a player, Wilson would have had two options -- identify the player(s), or not work in the NFL until he does so. Since no member of the Bears has been suspended for using HGH or any other banned substance given to him by Wilson, it's logical to conclude that any banned substances were for Wilson's own use.
As to our Friday afternoon story, Wilson said that he finds it to be inconsistent for us to suggest that he should have sought treatment for diabetes complications through normal medical channels, but to not raise similar concerns regarding Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, who admittedly used HGH as an alternative to standard rehab and treatment techniques. Though we appreciate Wilson's concern, the possibility that he was merely buying a banned substance for one or more players creates a greater degree of skepticism.
Wilson also didn't like our reference to "snickering" in connection with his impotence. "When Korey Stringer died," Wilson said, "was it something to snicker about? When is a medical condition something to snicker about? . . . It's not like I drove naked through a Wendy's."
He's right. Medical conditions aren't something to snicker about. But the reality is that it's human nature for folks to snicker about matters regarding non-functioning genitalia. It doesn't make it right. But that's the difference between the two situations, as best we can discern.
With all that said, we think Wilson is telling the truth. He was diagnosed with Type I diabetes more than 20 years ago, while playing in the NFL. He has struggled to control the condition. He wanted to improve his quality of life, and his actions were unrelated to the use of any banned substance for competitive means.
Though Wilson says he is a bit "miffed" by the extent of the penalty, he also says that he understands that the league needs to hold the coaches and front-office employees to a higher standard. We hope that the Cowboys and the NFL will allow him to put the episode behind him, and that he will be able to continue his career in pro football -- one which has covered more than 25 years as a player and as a coach.