http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins/federal-drug-agents-launch-surprise-inspections-of-nfl-teams-following-games/2014/11/16/5545c84e-6da5-11e4-8808-afaa1e3a33ef_story.html By Sally Jenkins and Rick Maese November 16 at 7:13 PM
Federal drug agents conducted surprise inspections of National Football League team medical staffs on Sunday as part of an ongoing investigation into prescription drug abuse in the league. The inspections, which entailed bag searches and questioning of team doctors by Drug Enforcement Administration agents in cooperation with the Transportation Security Administration, were based on the suspicion that NFL teams dispense drugs illegally to keep players on the field in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, according to a senior law enforcement official with knowledge of the investigation.
The medical staffs were part of travel parties whose teams were playing at stadiums across the country. The law enforcement official said DEA agents inspected the medical staffs of multiple teams but would not specify which ones were inspected or where.
The San Francisco 49ers said they were inspected by federal agents following their game against the New York Giants in New Jersey but did not provide any details. “The San Francisco 49ers organization was asked to participate in a random inspection with representatives from the DEA Sunday night at MetLife Stadium,” team spokesman Bob Lange said in an e-mailed statement. “The 49ers medical staff complied and the team departed the stadium as scheduled.”
The Seattle Seahawks were also subject to an inspection following their game Sunday in Kansas City, according to media reports. Contrary to early reports, the law enforcement official said the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were not among the teams inspected by the DEA.
The DEA had reason to look at those teams in particular, but the investigation is not restricted to them, according to the law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the probe is ongoing. The official said the investigation focuses on practices across the 32-team league, including possible distribution of drugs without prescriptions or labels, and the dispensing of drugs by trainers rather than physicians.
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