NFL Denies Intentional Eric Reid Drug Tests

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Photo credit Jeremy Brevard, USA Today Images

The NFL and the NFL Players Association released a joint statement on Wednesday morning stating that Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid was not targeted by the NFL.

Reid is currently in a lawsuit with the NFL for claims of collusion. Reid was a free agent and not looked at by any NFL teams until the Panthers signed him in September 2018. 

Reid said the league was targeting him because of the ongoing collusion case against the NFL in which he alleged team owners conspired to keep him out of the league because of his decision to kneel alongside former 49ers teammate Colin Kaepernick during the national anthem to protest racial and social injustice.

Throughout the season, Reid repeatedly showed reporters after games random Performance-Enhancing Drug tests (PED) notices on his locker. 

Following the Panthers final home game on December 17, Reid had his seventh random drug test notice. 

According to The Associated Press, a source says Reid was not tested as many times as he said he was. The person did not say the exact number of times Reid was tested. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality of the case.

Head coach Ron Rivera told reporters earlier in the season "If my name came up that many times I would buy a lottery ticket." 

Most players say they are subject to testing about two or three times per year over the course of a 17-week regular season.

"It's supposed to be random," Reid said. "It's obviously not."

Reid will be a free agent at the conclusion of the NFL season. 

Reid was also fined four times by the NFL this season for illegal hits, costing him more than $50,000. He appealed all of the hits and one of them was overturned.

Below is Eric Reid speaking earlier in the season about his thoughts on the NFL's collusion