Henry ruling near

Drug-test appeal might be settled within two weeks

By Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published November 17, 2007 at 12:45 a.m.

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Travis Henry

Broncos coach Mike Shanahan has made it clear he believes the NFL has erred in the case of Travis Henry's positive drug test.

Soon, likely within the next two weeks, Shanahan, the Broncos and Henry will find out if the league and commissioner Roger Goodell agree.

Henry was excused from Broncos practice Friday to attend a 1 p.m. appeal hearing in Phoenix with Goodell and other league officials.

Henry has disputed a positive marijuana test that has him facing a possible one-year suspension.

"It's something we've been expecting - we understand procedures and you just have to deal with it," Shanahan said.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league would have no comment on the proceedings Friday or about a possible timetable for a decision.

Henry was scheduled to be back in Denver in time to attend team meetings and practice today - the Broncos will have a short workout this evening at Invesco Field at Mile High. His status for the game Monday night is uncertain, because of a partial tear of the posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. Henry has worn a brace on the knee during practice this week.

His long-term status won't be known until Goodell reaches a decision. The Broncos are expected to be notified whether Henry will have to serve the suspension by either Tuesday or in the days immediately after the Broncos' Nov. 25 game in Chicago.

"I don't know if it will be two days later or nine days later," Shanahan said. "It all depends on how long they meet and how long it takes them to make a decision."

Henry did not return a call Friday, but before he left for Phoenix, he said, "The only thing I know is, I've done everything asked of me. That's all I can do. Whatever happens, I guess, is what it is."

He added that he had a "good feeling about what's going to happen."

Shanahan vigorously has defended Henry of late, saying the running back had passed a lie- detector test as well as a hair- sample test.

Shanahan also has said that if he believed Henry had failed a drug test, he no longer would be with the team.

But it's unclear if the additional tests will sway Goodell, because the urine test that Henry publicly has said registered positive is part of the drug-testing program the NFL Players Association agreed to in collective bargaining, an agreement that was ratified by the players.

Henry also filed a lawsuit against the league in September, shortly after he was notified of his positive test, that challenges portions of the league's drug program and is ongoing. The league filed a motion in federal court last week to have the case thrown out.

The league's discipline schedule for Henry is not contingent on the progress of the court case. He could be suspended before the case is resolved and later reinstated if the case's outcome influences how the league handles its drug policy.

Henry's attorneys also are believed to be challenging the threshold of what is considered a positive test, because the league's standard is lower than most drug tests in the workplace. They also were expected to argue Friday that the test result showed too low a threshold for Henry to have used illegal drugs himself, rather than a positive test that resulted from secondhand inhalation.

Having been suspended for four games for a failed drug test in 2005, Henry was required to be tested up to 10 times a month for a period of two years - that two-year period was scheduled to be up Oct. 1.

If suspended for a year, Henry would also be in "Stage 3" of the league's testing program and could be tested up to 10 times a month for the remainder of his career, if he eventually is reinstated by Goodell.

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