Steroids: The New Price of Competition

Their lack of success has kept them out of the spotlight. Who really cares if the back up linebacker on the Chargers is using steroids? The third baseman picking splinters out of his bum in the dugout never has to worry about being dragged in front of a panel of reporters for alleged steroid use. The media want a guy that is going to make the headlines. It doesn’t change the fact that if the average person took steroids they still couldn’t hit the ball like A-Rod does or sack a quarterback like Shawne Merriman.

Athlete’s all around are stronger and faster than they were 20 years ago. Jerry Rice, arguably the best wide receiver professional football has ever seen, ran a 4.6 forty yard dash. Linebackers that weigh 250 to 270 pounds now consistently run 4.6 forties. Shawne Merriman ran a 4.6 and he is 6′5″ and 270 pounds. DeMarcus Ware is another. Patrick Willis ran a 4.5 forty at 6′3″ and 243 pounds.

With the clear and documented difference in athleticism what can be contributed to this dramatic change? Yes. Training programs have gotten better, and yes, more athletes now lift weights. Athletes were still training heavily twenty years ago, but we didn’t see nearly as high a percentage of players with such high weights and low body fat percentages.

The real issue is the unfairness and unreliability of the professional sport’s drug testing policies. Drug tests are random and they give players at least a twenty-four hour notice beforehand. Furthermore, some drugs, like synthetic human growth hormone (HGH) are untestable. Every one’s body naturally produces this chemical and it’s impossible to determine the amount that is supposed to be in a person’s blood. Another issue is who decides who gets tested? Why are only a select few athletes subjected to these tests? With the amount of money spent on professional sports, they can afford to submit players to a bi-weekly drug test. The average NFL franchise is valued at one billion dollars. A thousand million dollars wouldn’t even flinch at the cost of testing each and every player for steroids. People just want to turn a blind eye to all of the obvious flaws in the system.

Millions of dollars are being paid to athletes based upon their athletic performance. We have all seen shows like “Fear Factor” or “Survivor,” in which, people subject themselves to all kinds of humiliating and gross spectacles in order to win some cash. What makes us think that players won’t risk taking steroids to sign a one hundred and fifty million dollar contract like Alex Rodriguez? We all need to admit the probability of most players in professional sports using steroids. Fighting steroids in pro sports is no different than fighting a war on drugs. There is no way to eliminate the substance completely, and it’s impossible to catch everyone who is using. Everyday, hundreds of drug dealers are taken off the streets. Yet, for every hundred taken off the streets there are still one thousand dealers still selling their wares to eager buyers. The biggest difference is that steroids only hurt the person that is taking them. Drugs can hurt other people. This is our dilemma. 

It’s time for us to look at the situation and deal with it as a society. I am tired of seeing the all stars being singled out in the reality show that has become pro sports. Test everyone or test no one. Release all one hundred names or don’t release any.