Ayanbadejo was notified Tuesday that he lost his appeal to the league for having an anti-estrogen component in his system in a random drug test administered in January. It is a banned substance in the league’s steroid policy, and as a first-time member of the league’s drug program, he will miss a quarter of the season.


He first found out about the failed test in April, and notified the Arizona Cardinals, which led to his release. Ayanbadejo was up front with the Bears about his situation, and they expressed to him that they would stand by him. Ayanbadejo said the product which led to his positive test was Max LMG, and he said it was not properly labeled and he is planning to pursue legal action against its maker.


``What was in my system was not a steroid,’’ he said. ``There’s a difference between an anabolic steroid and an anti-estrogen component. But the league considers that a related substance. I took a supplement that had an anti-estrogen component and I did not know it was contained in the supplement.