Six NFL players are suspended for doping. The National Football League suspended six players for four games without pay on Tuesday, apparently for using steroids, which is against the league’s anti-doping policy, ESPN is reporting. Among the players suspended are members of the Minnesota Vikings’ stout defensive line, ESPN says. The suspended players were running back Deuce McAllister and defensive linemen Charles Grant and Will Smith of New Orleans; defensive linemen Kevin and Pat Williams of Minnesota; and long snapper Bryan Pittman of Houston. All six players were punished for using a diuretic, which can serve as a masking agent for steroids. “I definitely was not trying to cheat in any form,” McAllister told The Associated Press in a phone interview. “I tried to do everything the right way.”  The punishment means all six players will miss the end of the regular season, which could particularly hurt Minnesota, which relies heavily on the Williamses in its run defense, which ranks second in the league, ESPN says. Angelo Wright, the agent for Pat Williams, told ESPN that he planned to file a motion in federal court in the next 24 hours, presumably to put off his client’s suspension. Tom Condon, the agent for Kevin Williams, said he hadn’t yet determined what course of action to take. If a player’s team makes the playoffs, the player will be eligible to return to the active roster on Dec. 29, ESPN reports.

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