Brandon Marshall: NFL players use Viagra to get an 'edge'

Chicago Bears wide receiver Brandon Marshall said he knows some NFL players have taken Viagra to get a competitive edge on the field. (Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Chicago Bears wide receiver Brandon Marshall said that in addition to NFL players taking Adderall to gain a competitive edge, he has seen some players resort to Viagra in order to excel on the field, according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune. The story has also been acknowledged by NFL.com.

"I'm fortunate enough to be blessed with size and some smarts to give me my edge. But some guys, they'll do whatever they can to get an edge. I've heard of some crazy stories. I've heard (of) guys using, like, Viagra, seriously. Because the blood is supposedly thin, some crazy stuff. So, you know, it's kind of scary with some of these chemicals that are in some of these things so you have to be careful."

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Louis Murphy was arrested in April 2011 when he was a member of the Oakland Raiders for possessing a "non-labeled prescription bottle containing 11 individual pills later identified as Viagra," according to a report from The Gainseville Sun.

As an article on Thursday from Fox Sports points out, Viagra could soon become the next performance enhancing drug to be banned by the NFL as the league continues to seek an influx of suspensions resulting from PED's, namely from Adderall:

One benefit of Viagra and similar drugs would be the enhanced delivery of oxygen to the muscles, which also aids in hastening the body's recovery from workouts. The drug also counteracts impotence, a frequent side-effect of steroid usage.