Federal drug enforcement agents showed up unannounced Sunday to check at least two visiting NFL teams' medical staffs as part of an investigation into former players' claims that teams mishandled prescription drugs.
There were no arrests, Drug Enforcement Agency spokesman Rusty Payne said Sunday. The San Francisco 49ers' staff was checked at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, after they played the New York Giants. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' staff was going to be checked at Baltimore-Washington International airport after playing the Redskins.
The operation was still ongoing, and other teams may be checked later Sunday, Payne said.
"DEA agents are currently interviewing NFL team doctors in several locations as part of an ongoing investigation into potential violations of the (Controlled Substances Act)," Payne said.
The DEA spot checks did not target specific teams, but were done to measure whether visiting NFL clubs were generally in compliance with federal law. Agents requested documentation from visiting teams' medical staffs for any controlled substances in their possession, and for proof that doctors could practice medicine in the home team's state.
The investigation was sparked by a lawsuit filed in May on behalf of former NFL players going back to 1968. The lawsuit alleges the NFL and its teams, physicians and trainers acted without regard for players' health, withholding information about injuries while at the same time handing out prescription painkillers such as Vicodin and Percocet, and anti-inflammatories such as Toradol, to mask pain and minimize lost playing time.
