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SAN DIEGO (AP) - Banished from the NFL for four weeks, San Diego Chargers star outside linebacker Shawne Merriman said he's not a steroid cheat.
He also suggested he's a victim of the league's drug testing policy.
Merriman dropped by Chargers headquarters on Wednesday to address his teammates before beginning a four-game suspension for testing positive for the steroid nandrolone. He and his attorney have blamed a tainted supplement.
The second-year pro, tied for the NFL lead with 8 1/2 sacks, dropped his appeal Tuesday, after which the league announced his suspension. Merriman could have gone through with a hearing on Nov. 7, which would have allowed him to play in Sunday's home game against the Browns. But he concluded he didn't stand a chance of winning, because the NFL holds players responsible for the supplements they take.
"Yes, I did something unknowingly, but at the same time I did something that was against the policy," Merriman said at a news conference. Merriman can rejoin the team on Nov. 27.
"This has been a real hard process for me because I'm actually having to make a decision on playing football or sitting out," said Merriman, who tied his career high with three sacks in a 38-24 win against St. Louis on Sunday. "I think right now was an important time for me to pull the appeal based on all the facts and all the information we have received. It was the right time to do it for the team."
Besides the Browns game, Merriman will miss road games against Cincinnati and Denver, and a home game against Oakland. Merriman was a Pro Bowl starter last year, when he was voted the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Had he appealed and lost, he might have missed both games against Denver, which shares the AFC West lead with the Chargers at 5-2. The Broncos visit San Diego on Dec. 10.
Merriman, nicknamed "Lights Out" because of his jarring hits, knows some people might remain skeptical.
"It's hard to change everybody's mind on what happened. But what they have to know is that it can happen to anybody. It's hard to do anything illegal or doing anything against the rules nowadays because they're so strict already.
"I'm not a cheater," he said. "I don't believe in cheating the game, I don't condone cheating the game, I have no reason to cheat the game. I'm about playing football and I'm a great football player. ... I will go out and be the best football player possible and be known as one of the best to ever play."
Merriman refused to identify the supplement that led to the positive test. He said it's an over-the-counter supplement, and that while he took it for 1 1/2 years, he never had it checked by the team's training staff.
"We're not allowed to say what product yet because there's a high, high possibility that we'll be going after the manufacturer," he said.
"What I tested positive for you can't inject, you can't do anything like that," he said. "It's something ingested and it's from a defective supplement."
Merriman said he took the supplement primarily to restore his energy when he was working out two or three times a day in the offseason.
"It's just sad that I've been taking it for a while and I didn't know. It never came up positive for anything and when it happened, that's when I found out more information about, you know, any kind of tainted supplements. I never knew that supplements can have anything different than what's on the ingredients."
He also said the positive drug test occurred on Aug. 2, and that he came up clean on three subsequent tests.
"It's one of those things where I'm almost a victim of the policy and I have to accept what happened and move on. I know I made a mistake. I didn't do it knowingly and I'm willing to take full responsibility for whatever happens."
Carlos Polk, who missed most of the last two seasons due to injuries, is expected to start in Merriman's place. Polk has no starts and one sack in six seasons.
He also suggested he's a victim of the league's drug testing policy.
Merriman dropped by Chargers headquarters on Wednesday to address his teammates before beginning a four-game suspension for testing positive for the steroid nandrolone. He and his attorney have blamed a tainted supplement.
The second-year pro, tied for the NFL lead with 8 1/2 sacks, dropped his appeal Tuesday, after which the league announced his suspension. Merriman could have gone through with a hearing on Nov. 7, which would have allowed him to play in Sunday's home game against the Browns. But he concluded he didn't stand a chance of winning, because the NFL holds players responsible for the supplements they take.
"Yes, I did something unknowingly, but at the same time I did something that was against the policy," Merriman said at a news conference. Merriman can rejoin the team on Nov. 27.
"This has been a real hard process for me because I'm actually having to make a decision on playing football or sitting out," said Merriman, who tied his career high with three sacks in a 38-24 win against St. Louis on Sunday. "I think right now was an important time for me to pull the appeal based on all the facts and all the information we have received. It was the right time to do it for the team."
Besides the Browns game, Merriman will miss road games against Cincinnati and Denver, and a home game against Oakland. Merriman was a Pro Bowl starter last year, when he was voted the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Had he appealed and lost, he might have missed both games against Denver, which shares the AFC West lead with the Chargers at 5-2. The Broncos visit San Diego on Dec. 10.
Merriman, nicknamed "Lights Out" because of his jarring hits, knows some people might remain skeptical.
"It's hard to change everybody's mind on what happened. But what they have to know is that it can happen to anybody. It's hard to do anything illegal or doing anything against the rules nowadays because they're so strict already.
"I'm not a cheater," he said. "I don't believe in cheating the game, I don't condone cheating the game, I have no reason to cheat the game. I'm about playing football and I'm a great football player. ... I will go out and be the best football player possible and be known as one of the best to ever play."
Merriman refused to identify the supplement that led to the positive test. He said it's an over-the-counter supplement, and that while he took it for 1 1/2 years, he never had it checked by the team's training staff.
"We're not allowed to say what product yet because there's a high, high possibility that we'll be going after the manufacturer," he said.
"What I tested positive for you can't inject, you can't do anything like that," he said. "It's something ingested and it's from a defective supplement."
Merriman said he took the supplement primarily to restore his energy when he was working out two or three times a day in the offseason.
"It's just sad that I've been taking it for a while and I didn't know. It never came up positive for anything and when it happened, that's when I found out more information about, you know, any kind of tainted supplements. I never knew that supplements can have anything different than what's on the ingredients."
He also said the positive drug test occurred on Aug. 2, and that he came up clean on three subsequent tests.
"It's one of those things where I'm almost a victim of the policy and I have to accept what happened and move on. I know I made a mistake. I didn't do it knowingly and I'm willing to take full responsibility for whatever happens."
Carlos Polk, who missed most of the last two seasons due to injuries, is expected to start in Merriman's place. Polk has no starts and one sack in six seasons.
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