Golden Tate, the New York Giants’ prize free agency acquisition, has been suspended for four games for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
The wide receiver, who turns 31 on Aug. 2, announced his own suspension on Twitter Saturday, in which he blamed the positive test on an ingredient in a prescribed fertility medication.
The NFL has not announced the suspension and it had no comment, league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in an email Saturday to The Associated Press.
Tate said that when he realized the ingredient was on the banned substances list, “I immediately discontinued use, I reported the situation to the Independent Administrator of the NFL Policy on Performance-Enhancing Substances, and I spoke with my coaches and general manager. I did all of this well before a failed test was even confirmed.”
The receiver added that he knew “an initial suspension was imminent, but myself and the Giants organization are confident in the facts, and eagerly await my appeal to put this behind us.”
Despite Tate’s optimism, drug suspensions are rarely overturned due to the NFL’s ironclad policy on banned substances, which states that “[p]layers are responsible for what is in their bodies and a positive test will not be excused because a Player was unaware that he was taking a Prohibited Substance.”
In 2014, Indianapolis Colts defensive end Robert Mathis claimed that his pending suspension for violating the drug policy was due to his taking unapproved fertility drugs.
Tate said that when he realized the ingredient was on the banned substances list, “I immediately discontinued use, I reported the situation to the Independent Administrator of the NFL Policy on Performance-Enhancing Substances, and I spoke with my coaches and general manager. I did all of this well before a failed test was even confirmed.”
The receiver added that he knew “an initial suspension was imminent, but myself and the Giants organization are confident in the facts, and eagerly await my appeal to put this behind us.”
Despite Tate’s optimism, drug suspensions are rarely overturned due to the NFL’s ironclad policy on banned substances, which states that “[p]layers are responsible for what is in their bodies and a positive test will not be excused because a Player was unaware that he was taking a Prohibited Substance.”
