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FRISCO, Texas (WBAP/KLIF News) — When NFL owners met last month in Phoenix, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones suggested the league eliminate its ban on players smoking marijuana. While some are suggesting an ulterior motive, such as not having more Cowboys suspended for failing drug tests, Washington Post columnist Christopher Ingraham says it’s a good idea, arguing it could actually save lives.
Ingraham points out that team doctors regularly give addictive opioids to players even though research has shown they don’t do much to relieve pain. Marijuana, he says, has shown to be helpful for pain with none of the health risks of opioids.
“The NFL, in other words, is pumping its players full of highly addictive and deadly substances that are of dubious use for treating the long-term, chronic pain suffered by so many players—and fining and suspending players who choose instead to self-medicate with a less-addictive and nonlethal substance,” writes Ingraham.
Eights states have legalized the use of recreational marijuana putting the NFL at odds with state law for seven of its teams. On the other hand, 25 teams – including the Cowboys – are in states where pot is not legal and in any case it’s illegal to transfer weed across state lines.
According to ESPN the matter would have to be negotiated between team owners and the NFL Players Association. A compromise solution being proposed by the players union is that the league continue to test for marijuana use but reduce penalties for players found to have residual pot in their systems.
(Copyright 2017, WBAP/KLIF News)
