It’s only a matter of time until marijuana clears the list of banned substances in the NFL. But until then, players are going to have to try to play their best charade.
With the divisional title outcomes pinning two of the most marijuana influenced states against each other — Washington and Colorado — a lot has been made about “Super Bowl 420.” And while it’s funny to joke around, especially with the amount of players are already smoking in the league, it’s becoming a serious issue that commissioner Roger Goodell can no longer avoid.
With more research supporting the idea of pot actually benefiting players both in physical relief and mental stability, it seems that the only viable solution is to let players bake. Instead of feeding them prescription painkillers like Oxycodone and Vicodin (which many of the of the retired players become addicted to), there’s an all-natural solution that can help players in more way than one.
HBO’s “Real Sports” took a closer look at the issue and interviewed a pair of retired players. Former Broncos tight end, Nate Jackson, who played from 2003-2008, and former journeyman punter, Chris Kluwe, who played from 2005-2012, were open about their frequent marijuana use and shed some light on what the culture is really like around the league.
Jackson admits that he used the herb to help him cope with pain. The traumatic stress that players put their body through can be overwhelming, and while weed might not completely numb the pain, it offers relief that cannot exactly be explained.
“Marijuana was something that helped me. As the season wore on, my body would start to break down, I was in a lot of pain.”
Chris Kluwe opened up a little more about how rampantly it’s actually used between players throughout the season. From his remarks, it sounds pretty widespread and known. But he insists that weed was only used while unwinding and to relax the mind.
“You know in the locker room when guys talked about it, it wasn’t about I’m going to go get blazed and tear up the town, it was like yeah, I smoked a bit and went and passed out on the couch.”
Roger Goodell knows what his guys want at this point, and he’ll give it to them. It’s only a matter of time at this point. Ricky Williams truly played in the wrong era. Damn shame!
