Berrian says hotline help is hit and miss

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league plans to "follow up" with a toll-free hotline that players can call to check on supplements for banned ingredients, after comments made by Vikings receiver Bernard Berrian.

Berrian, appearing Tuesday on Sirius NFL Radio, told co-hosts Adam Schein and John Riggins that he called the hotline on two occasions but never received a response.

Berrian was asked about the subject after a report by Fox Sports on Sunday that Vikings Pro Bowl defensive tackles Kevin and Pat Williams are among a group of NFL players facing four-game suspensions for violating the league's steroid policy by taking a weight-loss diuretic that is considered a masking agent.

"You've got to take some responsibility and call into that hotline [to inquire about the legality of certain products]," Berrian said on Sirius. "But I know one thing about that hotline. I've called twice before and actually never gotten a hold of anybody sometimes. So even when you try to do the right thing sometimes it is still hard to get a hold of somebody and really find out what you're really taking."

Berrian said he made the calls because he was taking a supplement that was "kind of fairly new and I wanted to make sure that it wasn't illegal and I'd get suspended for taking it."

He finally did get a response after a third call. The product was a protein beverage that was determined to be legal.

Aiello said in an e-mail the hotline is run by an independent group and is manned during "extended business hours." Players are supposed to receive return calls when they leave messages -- something the league will check on after Berrian's comments -- and also can send e-mails to a dedicated address for response.

It's imperative players have their questions answered because, as Vikings coach Brad Childress said Monday, team medical personnel can't provide help.

"They don't get involved with any of that stuff," Childress said. "They're not allowed for anyone to bring anything to them or ask, 'What about this? Can I take this supplement?' They can't give any advice. That's kind of how it goes."

As for the case of the Williamses, Berrian agreed the NFL might want to examine its rules and not jump to conclusions about masking agents when it comes to bigger players who need to lose weight.

"It probably should be [examined] in some kind of way because some guys are bigger and really do need the help sometimes," Berrian said. "There is a lot of stress put on making weight every week so you don't get fined. It's something they should definitely take a look at."

Berrian, like most of his teammates on Monday, avoided saying whether the situation will become a distraction. "All I know is we count on them being here this week," he said.