The legalization of marijuana as a medical drug in the U.S. seemed to have opened its positive properties to an industry who has historically persecuted individuals involved in it.
In a Twitter post, Sports Business Journal's Daniel Kaplan said National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell will consider letting players in the football league use medical marijuana for sport-related injuries.
Kaplan's tweet read, "Goodell says if medical experts ever say medical marijuana would help with concussions then would consider allowing it."
The Bleacher Report said that this was not a misread. In early January, ESPN New York's Jane McManus had passed Goodell's comments about finding alternatives to help injured players in the league to cope with their pain without breaking any NFL rules.
She quoted Goodell, who told her, "I don't know what's going to develop as far as the next opportunity for medicine to evolve and to help either deal with pain or help deal with injuries. but we will continue to support the evolution of medicine. I'm not a medical expert. We will obviously follow signs. We will follow medicine and if they determine this could be a proper usage in any context, we will consider that. Our medical experts are not saying that right now."
Sports Illustrated said that even though medical marijuana use in the NFL could be a real possibility, it will still need more time for the idea to take off in the league. Recreational marijuana, according to NFL rules, is a banned substance and that league players found to have used the sustance the first time will be banned to play up to four games.
Frank Schwab of Shutdown Corner referred to pundits' claims about medical marijuana as an aid to ease out post-concussion symptoms, which include nausea and depression. Nonetheless, despite the need to address issues of players suffering concussions during playoffs, Schwab said the traditionally conservative NFL might require rock-solid evidence of medical marijuana's pain management benefits without venturing to the territory of supporting recreational drugs even though it is legal in some U.S. states.
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