Brady Quinn Says PED Use Might Be Responsible for Rampant NFL Injuries

Week 8 of the 2015 NFL season was, in a word, carnage.

Over the course of Sunday's games, body after hobbled body was carted off fields around the league. 

The docket of casualties included Le'Veon Bell, Steve Smith Sr., Reggie Bush, Ricardo Lockette, Khiry Robinson and Cameron Wake—all claimed by season-ending injuries.

It's a list that's too long and too talented, even by the NFL's macabre standards, to be dismissed casually. People are aghast and looking for answers, and one of the more intriguing theories about the recent rash of injuries has been put forth by former NFL quarterback Brady Quinn.

While appearing on CBS Sports' Roughing the Passer podcast (via the site's John Breech) on Tuesday, Quinn raised the possibility that the greater prevalence of performance-enhancing drugs—specifically human growth hormone—might be the reason it seems like more NFL players are going down with serious injuries these days.

"

I’m not going to be a whistleblower and I’m not accusing anyone of anything. There’s got to be something these guys are taking. That’s what I think at least. ...

... I'm not accusing anyone. But I think the usage of HGH or performance-enhancing drugs or supplements is greater now than it's ever been because the money is bigger now than it's ever been and the punishment isn't really that bad if you think about it. ...

... You could say it’s what they’re taking, supplements and things that they’re putting in their body that are dehydrating their body and making them a little more tight and brittle, those sorts of things.

"

Quinn added that increased PED use among players is usually the byproduct of cost-benefit analysis. From a numbers standpoint, Quinn believes that the risks don't outweigh the potential rewards:

"

If you're a top-of-the-line guy and you're getting $16 million a year—you're getting a million bucks a game—if you get popped for taking something that helps you get that big time contract or hit that incentive in your contract where you get paid all of the sudden in your contract year, guess what? First [failed test], four-game [suspension]. Let's talk about financially, "Am I going to sacrifice $4 million in order for me to get that big contract on the back-end? Yea, I am."

"

Quinn's theory is interesting, even if it's more a product of the moment than anything else.

These midseason reapings are nothing new in the NFL, and every year feels like the worst one yet.

Maybe PEDs are part of it. Maybe we sometimes forget how unforgiving football is.

Dan is on Twitter.