San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh has said that he has noticed the recent trend of Seattle Seahawks players failing drugs tests.
The 49ers' NFC West rivals have had the highest rate of suspensions for players using performance-enhancing substances in the league over the last two years.
Harbaugh told the team's website: "I've definitely noticed it. You don't know what it is. Even when people say what it is, you don't know that that's what it is. For this, throw it out, or it's that, but that's usually the agents of the players themselves saying it's, for example, [ADHD medications] Adderall.
"But the NFL doesn't release what it actually is. So you have no idea. You're taking somebody at their word, that I don't know that you can take them at their word, understanding the circumstances.
"Play by the rules and you always want to be above reproach. Especially when you're good, because you don't want people to come back and say they're winning because they're cheating. So we want to be above reproach in everything and do everything by the rules. Because if you cheat to win, then you've already lost, according to [former college coach] Bo Schembechler."
Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor recently revealed that the team had held a meeting in a bid to reduce the number of failed drugs tests at the franchise.
Sian Cowper
