4. The NFL without Drug Testing

For my creative writing class, I had to write a short story. My original idea for the story was to follow an NFL team through the playoffs, but in a universe where the NFL doesn’t drug test and players are allowed to use PED’s as much as they please, especially steroids and stimulants such as amphetamines, meth and cocaine. Unfortunately, I was pressed for time and wasn’t able to follow through with this idea. So, I’d like to use my blog to describe what I think the NFL would look like without drug testing.

First of all, I think that the players of all positions would be much larger on average due to steroids. Based on a few articles about the effects of steroids on muscle gain, I’d estimate that players could be around 20-30 pounds heavier across all positions. They could probably get even larger than that, but at some point the extra weight would compromise their speed and quickness. Some types of steroids could also help to strengthen athletes leg muscles and fast-twitch fibers, allowing them to accelerate faster to ridiculous top speeds, jump higher and generally be more explosive. The steroids and other hormones would also help player’s to recover more quickly between games and from injuries, as well as play at a more consistent level.

Secondly, if players were to use the optimal amount of stimulants at which they’d maximize their performance, they would be much more aggressive and aware. A prime example of this is the legendary Giants linebacker, Lawrence Taylor. He is often revered as one of the most dominant, feared and savage defenders to ever play the game. Unsurprisingly, he had a severe cocaine addiction and would use it to improve his football performance. If every player used stimulants, defenders would hit harder, linemen would push with more force, running backs would find the holes quicker and break more tackles. Additionally, receivers would drop the ball less, and quarterbacks would make faster reads and release the ball more quickly and accurately.

While the benefits of drugs would make the game more exciting, there would also be a few drawbacks. Players would not have as much stamina as they would exert much more energy with stimulants, so they’d most likely have to rotate out every few plays. The drugs would also take a huge toll on their bodies, so their careers would not last as long, and the extra aggression and fearlessness would cause many more injuries. Since PED’s help athletes to surpass their natural abilities, most players would be similar in performance so it’d be hard to stand out and their would be less big plays.

In general, if NFL stopped drug testing and every player started using PED’s, the plays themselves would be filled with more action, but the closeness in ability would make it hard for individual players to make big plays, so much more of the game would depend on coaching strategy. It would also make the franchise and contract system much more complicated, as players would have a much higher turnover rate and we likely wouldn’t have the same story lines that we do surrounding teams and players like we do now. It’s an interesting idea to think about, but I believe that it’s best to keep our athletes as natural as possible and we should celebrate the natural abilities of the human body.