NEW YORK -- The NFL has suspended six players for four games each for violating the league's anti-doping policy.

The players used a diuretic, which can serve as a masking agent for steroids.

The suspended players are running back Deuce McAllister and defensive linemen Charles Grant and Will Smith of New Orleans; defensive linemen Kevin and Pat Williams of Minnesota; and long snapper Bryan Pittman of Houston.

A seventh player, Atlanta's Grady Jackson, was not suspended. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said league chief counsel Jeff Pash had asked for additional information from Jackson.

The punishment is an especially harsh blow to Minnesota, which leads the NFC North and relies heavily on the two Williamses in its run defense, which ranks second in the league.

If a player's team makes the playoffs, the player will be eligible to return to the active roster on Dec. 29.

In their appeals, some players said the banned substance Bumetanide was not listed as an ingredient in StarCaps, an over-the-counter weight-loss pill.

David Cornwell, the lawyer for the three Saints, called the decisions "inconsistent with the objectives of the steroid policy."

"Deuce, Will, and Charles did not try to enhance their performance with steroids, nor did they knowingly expose themselves to the adverse health risks of a diuretic," Cornwell said in an e-mail. "They took a weight loss supplement that they had every reason to believe was safe."

In their appeals, some players said the banned substance Bumetanide was not listed as an ingredient in StarCaps, an over-the-counter weight-loss pill.

In fact, Jackson filed suit against StarCaps in Alameda County Superior Court in California last month, seeking restitution for any lost salary and damages for "false advertising and unfair business practices."

But in issuing the suspensions, the league reiterated the section of its policy that reads:

"You and you alone are responsible for what goes into your body. Claiming that you used only legally available nutritional supplements will not help you in an appeal. ... Even if they are bought over-the-counter from a known establishment, there is currently no way to be sure that they contain the ingredients listed on the packaging or have not been tainted with prohibited substances ...

"If you take these products, you do so AT YOUR OWN RISK! For your own health and success in the league, we strongly encourage you to avoid the use of supplements altogether, or at the very least to be extremely careful about what you choose to take."

The NFL also said it sent two notifications about StarCaps on Dec. 19, 2006 -- one to NFL club presidents, general managers and head athletic trainers and the second to NFLPA executive Stacy Robinson, who oversees the steroid policy for the union. That letter, according to the league, advised that StarCaps had been added to the list of prohibited dietary supplement companies.