NFL repeats nonsense by "randomly" testing another Patriots player after Week 4

Despite the mostly wishful desire to forget what the Patriots looked like against the 49ers in Week 4, one player has consistently shown up and become the team's leading scorer this season. It's not a great look, but free agent-acquired kicker Joey Slye set a franchise record with his performance, scoring half of the points for the Patriots on Sunday afternoon.

It's quite a significant change from just one season ago, as rookie Chad Ryland became more of a liability on the field than any sort of help, which was unfortunate given how needed a solid kicker was to the Patriots roster.

With Slye on board for, at the very least, the 2024 season, the team can take a sigh of relief knowing he is a solid and reliable player, demonstrated by his 63-yard field goal against the 49ers. He followed that up with a second long kick, hitting a 54-yarder at the start of the fourth quarter.

His impressive performance apparently caught the eye of the NFL, as they "randomly" drug-tested Slye on Monday afternoon, similar to what they did with defensive end Keion White after his standout Week 1 performance.

It's the latest example of the league's failed selling of sporadic and completely random PED testing that is proven far too convenient nearly every week. Although players have to abide by it, it's seen as such a joke that social media posts similar to Slye's are becoming more common; even White posted a similar photo and caption on his Instagram.

While it's good to see the NFL trying to crack down on the illegal use of PEDs, it's not a great look for this to happen as often as it does. Given that this is now the second time a Patriot has been tested, it wouldn't be surprising to see it happen again at some point this season, which could be considered a good thing because that would mean a player played well even if the team lost.

But it would still be frustrating, of course.

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