The NFLPA and the NFL have reached an agreement to research alternative pain-management tools for the players. They’ll form joint medical committees to study different strategies, among which will be the use of marijuana. It’s important to make it clear that said committees will not be exclusively about marijuana, but a lot of different issues related to pain-management in the league. However, it’ll likely be one of the most important aspects of their work.
Marijuana continues to be a highly debated topic and it’s no different when discussing the NFL. Dallas Cowboys fans should be very familiar with the situation. Earlier this year, David Irving “quit” on football during an Instagram live stream while smoking weed. In the video, Irving talks about how he thinks it’s better to be addicted to marijuana rather than certain medications used by NFL teams to treat their players.
Although David Irving is not an authority on substances, that is where all of this debate centers around. Throughout the league, players are given strong medication to deal with injuries and the physical pain of playing pro football. I’m not an expert either, but it’s more than fair to say there’s a strong argument here. Specially in a country where marijuana has already been legalized in 10 states and the trend points toward legalization continuing.
The current CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) between the NFL and NFLPA will expire after the 2020 season and how the league’s drug policy looks like in the new agreement will be a huge factor for reaching a satisfactory CBA for both sides.
Of course, the fact that the NFLPA and the league are working together on such an important task doesn’t mean we will see any immediate changes or that the NFL’s ban on marijuana will be lifted anytime soon. Many big question marks will have to be answered before we hear about teams implementing this substance as a pain management tool.
For the Dallas Cowboys, this will be a relevant narrative down the line. Pass rusher Randy Gregory was reinstated after serving an indefinite suspension due to substance abuse prior to the 2018 season. After a dominant year, Gregory was suspended again by the NFL and it all points toward him sitting out this upcoming season and perhaps even more.
Even still, the Cowboys are still standing behind their 2015 second round pick. If the league ends up lifting its ban on marijuana, they’ll have to decide what they will do with players already serving a suspension for this reason. Guys like Randy Gregory, for instance. If it’s decided they’ll be reinstated to the NFL, the Cowboys will sure be glad to have supported Gregory all throughout the process.
Last year, the pass rusher proved how effective he could be even with a short period of time training. Hopefully, the Cowboys are able to get him back on the field eventually, where’s been consistently dominant. In the meantime, we’ll see how recently acquired Robert Quinn does in Dallas.
The NFL won’t be lifting its ban anytime soon, but it’s good to know they’re at least open minded to changing the league’s policy and consider alternatives that could benefit the players’ health. We’ll see how these new medical committees work and keep you updated here at Inside The Star.
