Originally posted by kerouac9
As I remember, he was already under "investigation" when we gave him the deal. He was suspended for an October infraction and re-signed in mid-November, right?
Dude...your signature messes up my screen!
Anyway,
If a player has a positive test, they get an appeal. The team is not alerted to the positive test until the appeal process is over with and the player loses the appeal.
The appeal process for Ray started when his test was positive in late September and ended with the suspension announcement in early December. When Ray lost his appeal, the NFL alerted the Cardinals about the suspension immediately.
The Cardinals did not have any knowledge of Ray's positive test until it was announced just like they did not know of Frank Garcia's positive test (April) until training camp.
The Cards announced the contract in early October.