Written by Thomas Moore

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An off-season trip to Las Vegas may end up costing Cleveland Browns cornerback Joe Haden four games.

According to Pro Football Talk,a "league source" says Haden tested positive for Adderall after taking the medication as a "pick-me-up" during an offseason visit to Las Vegas. A positive test would result in a four-game suspension of the Browns best defensive player.

Great.

PFT also says that, because the clock hasn't started ticking on the appeal process, Haden may be able to avoid a possible suspension until well into the 2012 season (or maybe not until next year). The NFL appeals process takes months to process.

If Haden does end up serving a suspension, he will join a growing list of young players who have been nailed for using Adderall, according to Gatorsports.com. New Orleans placekicker Garrett Hartley and former Cardinals tight end Ben Patrick were each suspended in 2009.

Brandon Spikes, a teammate of Haden's at Florida, was suspended for the final four regular season games of  2010. Spikes reportedly dose suffer from ADHD and had a prescription for the medicine. He reportedly did not challenge his suspension because he did not want to miss a playoff game.

Two New York Giants players, rookie safety Tyler Sash and fourth-year running back Andre Brown, were suspended this year even though both have prescriptions. Sash's suspension has been upheld while Brown's was overturned after notifying the NFL of his Adderall prescription.

Gatorsports.com points out that a  "2011 survey of students at 119 colleges in America done by the publication Addiction reported that 25 percent of students at 'very competitive' campuses take Adderall for academic purposes."

It will be interesting to see how the NFL handles all this.