Shawne Merriman -- You Got JUICED!
At the ballpark yesterday for the Jets/Lions game and keeping an eye on the out-of-town scores, I was amazed that any team led by a Huard (in this instance, the Chiefs and Damon) could take such an outstanding lead on the Chargers. It's my belief, after all, that the Chargers will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl (yes, I know that my predictions had the Bengals, but things change. Get over it). The Chargers came back to make it competitive, but still lost. And I questioned everything I knew in life.
Well, now it makes some sense. Last week leading up to the Chiefs game, decapitator Shawne Merriman was notified he failed a test for steroids and would be suspended for four games (Merriman was made aware of the results at the same time as Detroit's Shaun Rogers). Merriman appealed, and that's why the news has been delayed. But, yeah. Shawne Merriman is on steroids.
I guess it doesn't come as a shock -- the man is, after all, possibly the scariest human being on the planet -- but I'm still a little taken aback. I really like Merriman and was rooting for his success. I've always had a fascination with linebackers. It's my favorite position in football, and Merriman was set to make a case as one of the all-time greats. The fact that, as Chris Mortensen's source claims, the failure was due to "definitely steroids" and not a supplement, obviously hurts his reputation. That, coupled with the Steve Foley gunshot thing and injuries to Shaun Phillips and Igor Olshansky, hurt the Chargers' typically excellent defense.
The result might also bring a little more heat on the NFL, the sort which was oddly absent after all the news about the Panthers' Super Bowl steroids reports came out. With a bonafide superstar and young, emerging player being caught, what will the general response be?
