Vikings' 'Williams Wall' taken down, might go to court

The Vikings suffered a potentially devastating blow Tuesday when the National Football League announced Pro Bowl defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams would be suspended for the final four games of the regular season without pay for violating the league's policy on anabolic steroids and related substances.

The Vikings are in first place in the NFC North thanks in large part to the league's second-best run defense, which is anchored by the Williamses, who are not related.

The loss of the "Williams Wall" puts the Vikings' playoff chances in jeopardy; after facing winless Detroit on Sunday, they play three probable playoff teams. The suspensions take effect Sunday and end Dec. 29, a day after the team's regular-season finale against the New York Giants.

However, the Williamses are expected to apply for injunctions today in U.S. District Court in an attempt to continue playing, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

Peter Ginsberg, a New York-based attorney representing both Williamses, said Tuesday night that several options are being considered. "We haven't made any announcement about filing," an injunction, said Ginsberg, a partner at the law firm of Crowell and Moring. "We're going to take steps but we're not sure what they will be yet. There are several options, but until we make a decision, it's not constructive to talk about the various options. It's not a given we'll end up in court."

The Williamses are among six NFL players who were suspended Tuesday for using a diuretic that can serve as a masking agent for steroids.

The players took a product known as StarCaps, a weight-loss pill manufactured by California-based Balanced Health Products. An NFL-banned product known as bumetanide was in the pills but not listed as an ingredient.

Adolpho Birch, NFL vice president of law and labor policy, said on a conference call Tuesday that the league sent out a warning about StarCaps in late 2006, but that has been disputed.

"I think it's a blemish on the NFL's reputation," Ginsberg said. "It sort of takes a chunk out of the integrity of the steroid program and is an awful blemish on the careers and reputations of two players who have never done anything in violation of NFL rules and regulations.

"I think the league is solely responsible for this perceived violation of the program. The league knew as far back as 2006 that StarCaps contained an undisclosed controlled substance and failed to notify the union, the players or the teams.

"That not only exposed these players to possibly failing the program's guidelines, but exposes players to serious medical and health issues."

Vikings coach Brad Childress was not available to the media Tuesday, the players' day off, and owner Zygi Wilf spoke to reporters after a civic luncheon in Duluth before the suspensions were announced in the late afternoon.

The team did issue a two-sentence statement that read: "In response to this afternoon's ruling, the Minnesota Vikings are very disappointed in the National Football League's decision and suspension of Kevin and Pat Williams. At the appropriate time, we will have further comment."

Pat Williams stands to lose $941,176 of his $4 million in base salary; Kevin Williams would forfeit $235,294 of his $1 million in base salary.

Also suspended Tuesday were running back Deuce McAllister and defensive linemen Charles Grant and Will Smith of New Orleans, and long snapper Bryan Pittman of Houston.

David Cornwell, the lawyer for Pittman and the three Saints, called the decisions "inconsistent with the objectives of the steroid policy."

"Deuce, Will, and Charles did not try to enhance their performance with steroids, nor did they knowingly expose themselves to the adverse health risks of a diuretic," Cornwell told the Associated Press. "They took a weight-loss supplement that they had every reason to believe was safe."

If the Williamses do request a preliminary injunction, the request could go before a judge as early as this afternoon, and a decision could be made in the same day, according to Rick Ross, an employment and labor law attorney for Fredrickson and Byron of Minneapolis.

Ross said that it's "generally an uphill battle" for employees to gain a preliminary injunction in the federal courts. The primary standard, he said, is that employees have to show irreparable harm, which is difficult.

"The argument, I suspect, that the two gentlemen will make is that their absence from the team for any period of time could result in the team losing and they cannot be compensated for that loss," Ross said.

Ross said the key could be the judges assigned to the case. The Williamses are likely to fare better with a judge who is a sports fan. "Definitely, the judge you draw can impact the ultimate decision," Ross said.

Said Birch: "The policy is very clear that the appeal decision is final. It is binding on all of the parties and that is where we are. Whatever happens beyond that I guess we'll have to find out."

Birch said if the Williamses obtain an injunction and the ruling is upheld, the suspensions would extend into the playoffs, assuming the Vikings advance.

The news of the Williamses' suspensions first broke on Oct. 26. The two had their appeals hearings at the NFL offices in New York on Nov. 20. The players had separate hearings and were accompanied by team and legal representation that included Wilf and Kevin Warren, the Vikings vice president of legal affairs and chief administrative officer.

Wilf said Tuesday he attended the hearings "to lend support to Pat and Kevin and to make sure that the NFL knew that I took it very seriously and that the issues had to be aired out so that a resolution could come in a judicial manner."

The NFL began testing for steroids in 1987 and instituted discipline for using them two years later. This marks the second consecutive season that the Vikings have lost a player to suspension after testing positive for a banned substance. Defensive end Ray Edwards missed the final four games last season.

Staff writers Chip Scoggins and Dennis Brackin contributed to this report.