Football Rumblings

Painkiller Abuse Problems In the NFL

Posted on September 30, 2009 by James W

According to a report published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in March 2009, admissions for treatments of painkiller abuse are on the rise in the United States. The Treatment Episode Data Set (TEDS) for the year 2007 found that among all admissions for substance abuse treatments, painkiller abuse treatment admissions rose from 1% in 1997 to 5% in 2007. This is an alarming cause for worry as constant use of painkillers can lead to equally undesirable addictions and health risks such as those of non-prescription drugs. The field of sports is an area where painkiller abuse has become rampant due to the frequent injuries and related pain sports persons are exposed to on an almost daily basis. The added pressure of having to play with pain because of high competition in the field, leads these athletes to rely on painkillers to play without pain, and to extend their playing careers.

The National Football League (NFL), America’s most highly paid and competitive professional football league has its own share of prescription drug abus problems. A recent newspaper report mentioned that as many as 10% of 1500 NFL players surveyed had serious painkiller problems. Although, the NFL has a strict anti painkiller abuse policy that forbids any use of un-prescribed anti-inflammatory and pain killing medicines, many players find ways to circumnavigate and cheat the system. In fact, the prevalence of painkiller abuse is so widespread in the NFL today, the authorities are devising methods to detect and punish the guilty.

Since most teams carry with them a team of doctors and physiotherapists, the players sometimes have access to painkillers, which they can easily get by faking an injury or by exaggerating it. Most coaches, managers, doctors and support staffs of the teams deny that the players can gain access by unlawful means; revelations made by some players prove quite the opposite. Take the case of the Philadelphia Eagles defensive linesman Sam Rayburn, who played for the eagles in 2003-3006, and who was arrested in March 2009 for forging prescriptions for controlled drugs. He disclosed during the course of an inquiry that he could get access to painkillers through his team doctors from time to time. He admitted that he was self medicating himself with painkillers during the period he played for the eagles, and admitted that his medication slowly led him into an addiction that he couldn’t shake off.

Sam Rayburn’s is not a case in isolation; Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre was treated for Vicodin—a prescription painkiller—in 1996, and he came back from his treatment and led the Packers to victory in the Super Bowl. There are many more players that are coming into the open with their painkiller dependency problems. However, there are players who still get prescription painkillers by trading match tickets with pharmaceutical companies’ executives—a charge denied by the players as well as the pharmaceutical companies. The NFL retirement plan that provides disability & drug rehab benefits for players diagnosed with addiction problems doesn’t help the case of anti-abuse strategies.

No doubt, the demands of high-pressure professional sports can lead to injuries that sometimes can be even fatal, but what really worries the authorities now is the fact that players themselves try to shorten their life span trying to extend their playing span.

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