"You'd stop it, wouldn't you?" Taylor, the Dolphins' Pro Bowl defensive end, said Thursday. "I guarantee you'd stop it. I'm not the smartest man in the world, but I know if you did that, it would stop.

"There's a way to end this whole steroid situation: If you get caught using steroids or performance-enhancing drugs, you can't play the game anymore. It's as simple as that."

Who could be against one syllable of Jason Taylor's comments?

He doesn't like steroids in sports. He thinks players using performance-enhancing drugs are cheaters. He thinks they send the wrong message to kids on how to get ahead. He also thinks such drug use would stop among NFL players if lifetime bans were handed out for positive tests. ...

Do you understand how unusual it is for a star athlete to say what he thinks on anything beyond playing time and endorsement deals? We're in an age when star athletes run from any hint of controversy. They were raised on the line of Michael Jordan, who never talked politics because, "Republicans buy shoes, too."

You can't really blame them. You need belief, perspective and courage to put yourself on the line. Taylor doesn't like being a target, but he was asked a question and wasn't going to duck.