Minnesota Court of Appeals tears down Williams Wall
The NFL has been trying to suspend Minnesota Vikings’ defensive tackles Pat Williams and Kevin Williams (known together as the Williams Wall) for over two years now. The NFL slapped a total of six players, including the Williams
with a four-game suspension in December 2008. The Williamses (no relation to each other) challenged the decision in a federal court and were able to put off the suspension until now. However, a court ruling in favour of the NFL means that the NFL can finally
apply its suspension on the Williamses.
In 2008, both players tested positive for Bumetanide - a diuretic that the NFL prohibits from using. Bumetanide is not a performance-enhancing drug but it can mask the use of steroids. The NFL did not accuse any of the players
of staking steroids. However, the Williamses claim that they were not aware that the weight-loss supplement that they were using contained Bumetanide, as the StarCaps weight-loss supplement’s label did not disclose that it contained Bumetanide.
The players admitted to using StarCaps but denied using any performance-enhancing substance. Pat and Kevin Williams challenged the decision of the NFL by claiming that they were employees of a company based in Minnesota and were
governed by Minnesota’s labour and drug-testing rules. They argued that the NFL was in violation of the State’s labour laws and demanded for their suspension to be put on hold until the trial concluded.
The players continued to play while the case was being heard by the court. On Tuesday, the Williamses were dealt with a legal blow after a series of court victories. The Minnesota Court of Appeals ruled that the NFL was not in
violation of the state’s drug-testing policy.
The players argued that by failing to notify them of the presence of Bumetanide as specified by state laws, the NFL was in direct violation of them. The court ruled that under Minnesota’s state laws, Bumetanide was not defined
as a drug and hence the NFL was not obligated by Minnesota’s labour laws to tell players of the presence of Bumetanide in its drug tests.
“Today's opinion confirms the testing program did not violate Minnesota state law and vindicates the policy and procedures of the program,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said. “We are in the process of reviewing the decision and determining
our next steps.”
An earlier court decision had found the NFL in violation of state laws. It was not a complete victory for the NFL though. The ruling did not find the NFL in violation of state laws but reaffirmed the district court’s earlier decision,
which held the NFL to state labour laws. The ruling means that the NFL’s drug-testing policy can be challenged in different state courts.
The court denied the players’ appeal for a permanent relief from suspension. For now, it is not known if Kevin Williams will appeal to the decision. Pat Williams, on the other hand, has said that he will accept the decision, adding
that he had spent nearly one million dollars on legal fees since 2008 on the case. The 38-year-old Pat is the oldest defensive player in the league and his contract with the Vikings has ended. The Vikings are not expected to sign him to a new contract. However,
if Pat decides to retire from the NFL, he will not serve the four-game suspension. He said that his return to the Vikings is not likely.
On the opposite end, the 30-year-old Kevin signed a seven-year contract with the Vikings in 2006. Minnesota’s defence will feel the absence of the four-time pro bowl defender and the Vikings’ defensive captain. Although Kevin had
a career low of just one sack in the 2010 season, his contribution to the defence cannot be ignored. The Vikings defence had a total of 31 sacks, with Pat and Kevin assisting in 20 of those sacks. Their presence on defence allowed Minnesota’s rush defence
to limit its opponents to just 102.2 yards per game, which was ranked as the ninth-best average in the league in 2010.
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