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Well, so much for a quiet Friday. The NFL has announced that Seahawks defensive end Bruce Irvin will be suspended four games for violating the league's policy against performance enhancing drugs. Irvin released an apology and has no plans on appealing the suspension.
Bruce Irvin statement: "I am extremely disappointed in the poor judgment I showed and take full responsibility for my actions."
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 17, 2013
This is a big loss for the Seahawks, and a boon for the 49ers when they travel up to Seattle for their Week 2 Sunday Night Football matchup. While I prefer seeing the 49ers beat the Seahawks with both teams at full strength, I certainly won't complain about Irvin getting busted for PEDs. He had eight sacks in 2012 and is going to be a force in this league.
The Seahawks' first four games include traveling to Carolina, hosting San Francisco, hosting Jacksonville and traveling to Houston. One upside for the Seahawks in dealing with this situation is that they loaded up on pass rush help. It's not quite the same as Irvin, and it decreases that depth, but this doesn't sink those first four games. It just adds a degree of difficulty.
Feel free to say what you want about the Seahawks here, but please do not troll Field Gulls. If you head over there, remember that you represent Niners Nation.