Asked if the Seattle Seahawks have a problem with performance-enhancing drugs with five player suspensions since 2011, cornerback Richard Sherman told ESPN The Magazine, "it does seem that way."
Sherman, who was suspended last season for allegedly using Adderall only to have the ban overturned on appeal last December, said of the Seahawks' perceived PED problem: "It is what it is."
Sherman has consistently denied he used Adderall and did so again in the interview with ESPN The Magazine, which appears in the most recent issue.
"Nope. Didn't take it at all," he said. "The question only remains for people who want the question to remain."
Defensive end Bruce Irvin became the latest Seahawk to receive a PED suspension when he was banned last month for the first four games of the 2013 season. Six Seahawks have tested positive since 2011, with only Sherman having his suspension overturned. John Moffitt, Allen Barbre, Winston Guy, Brandon Browner and Irvin have received four-game suspensions. Barbre was later released by the team, while the other four are still on Seattle's roster.
Seahawks safety Kam Chancellor said in a SiriusXM interview last month that the team's veterans held a meeting after Irvin's suspension to spread the message to players on the team that it's time to grow up.
"We have to grow up and move past that," Chancellor said. "That's pretty much the message right now, growing up and not making the same mistakes over and over."
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said last month that Seattle goes beyond the league requirements for educating players, but he said they will continue to re-evaluate what needs to be done.