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The NFL Players Association will, as a practical matter, be investigating the NFL Players Association.

In response to Panthers safety Eric Reid‘s latest iteration of his allegation that the NFL has subjected him to not-random random PED testing, the NFLPA reportedly is “looking into” the situation, according to David Newton of ESPN.com.

That may just be a way of placating Reid, who apparently believes that the NFL has exclusive authority and control over the selection of 10 players per week from each team that will be subjected to random PED testing, and that the NFL is skewing that process to have his number called repeatedly.

“I know what I’m dealing with,” Reid said Wednesday, via Newton. “I have a collusion case against the NFL. This is something that doesn’t surprise me from them. It’s supposed to be random. It’s obviously not. I’m not surprised about it. Even though it seems crazy on the outside looking in, and it is, I’m not surprised.”

But does Reid really know what he’s dealing with? As explained on Wednesday, the NFL and NFLPA have collectively bargained the PED testing procedure. Under that procedure, they have jointly hired, and they jointly pay, an Independent Administrator to operate the PED testing program. The administration of the PED testing program includes executing the random selection of players to be tested. And if there are any irregularities in that regard, there should be digital footprints, at a minimum.

“I know I’ve done nothing wrong, so I’m not concerned that my drug tests will come back . . . that I’ll fail that test,” Reid said. “But the system is lying, much like what I’m protesting. It’s supposed to be a random system. I’ve been looking at math statistics trying to talk to people. I think it’s like a one percent chance that somebody gets tested this much. Statistically, big problem.”

But what’s more likely, given the realities of the testing process? A statistical oddity or foul play? And if the NFL were somehow persuading the Independent Administrator to rig the system to target Reid, wouldn’t the Independent Administrator also be rigging the result to generate a false positive?

Really, what does the NFL gain by surreptitiously engineering a non-random random PED testing process? The satisfaction of knowing Reid has to pee in a cup more often than he should?

If Reid nevertheless believes he’s being unfairly targeted, he should quit huffing and puffing and commence the process of blowing someone’s house down. And anyone in the media who’s going to be writing or talking about this situation should take care when creating copy and crafting headlines and hot takes to make it more clear that, absent evidence that the entity jointly hired by the NFL and the NFLPA has rigged the random selection process, this hypothesis remains firmly in tin-foil hat territory.

And if no evidence of shenanigans is found, that outcome should be trumpeted as loudly as Reid’s for now unfounded suspicions.