NEW YORK - Six players, including the heart of the Minnesota Vikings' stout defensive line, were suspended for four games without pay by the NFL on Tuesday for violating the league's anti-doping policy.

All six were punished for using a diuretic, which can serve as a masking agent for steroids.

The suspended players were 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.

The punishment means all six will miss the end of the regular season, an especially harsh blow to Minnesota, which relies heavily on the Williamses in its run defense, which ranks second in the league.

Angelo Wright, the agent for Pat Williams, said he planned to file a motion in federal court in the next 24 hours, presumably to put off his client's suspension.

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

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

The suspension of Pat and Kevin Williams, who are not related, may prove to be the most critical.

The Vikings lead Chicago by a game in the NFC North with four games left, in large part because the Williamses are considered the NFL's best defensive tackle combination.

Last Sunday, they led a goal-line stand that kept Chicago from taking a 14-3 second-quarter lead in Minneapolis. On the first play after the Bears were stopped, the Vikings' Gus Frerotte threw a 99-yard touchdown pass to Bernard Berrian, giving Minnesota a 10-7 lead it never lost, a 14-point swing.

“In response to this afternoon's ruling, the Minnesota Vikings are very disappointed in the National Football League's suspension of Kevin and Pat Williams,” the team said in a statement. “At the appropriate time, we will have further comment.”

Adolpho Birch, the NFL's vice president of law and labor policy, would not disclose during a conference call when the players tested positive.

Word of the positive test first leaked in late October.

David Cornwell, the lawyer for Pittman and 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.”