Roger Goodell believes Marijuana is 'Addictive' and bad for NFL Players

Posted by Sagar Satapathy on May 01, 2017.

At a time when numerous American States are legalizing marijuana either for medical use or recreational purpose or both in recent times, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell thinks marijuana is “addictive” and generally bad for football players.

While appearing on the ESPN show Mike & Mike on Friday, Goodell also claimed that he won’t change his stance until his advisers prove the medicinal benefit of marijuana consumption for the players.

 “I think you still have to look at a lot of aspects of marijuana use,” Goodell said. “It does have an addictive nature”.

Goodell pointed out that the long-term effects of marijuana are not yet known.

“There are a lot of compounds in marijuana that may not be healthy for the players long term. All of those things have to be considered. We really want to help our players in that circumstance, but I want to make sure that the negative consequences aren't something that is something that we'll be held accountable for some years down the road”, Goodell stated.

However, the NFL Commissioner acknowledged that the league will continue to evaluate whether marijuana can be used for medicinal benefits..

'We look at it from a medical standpoint,' Goodell said. 'So if people feel that it has a medical benefit, the medical advisers have to tell you that. We have joint advisers, we also have independent advisers, both the NFLPA and the NFL, and we'll sit down and talk about that”.

Goodell has been criticized for his strict ruling of marijuana use in the league. The NFLLPA is down with dope as a tool for pain management, as are many NFL coaches.

Notably, marijuana has been banned in the NFL. The players face fines and suspensions for multiple drug-test violations in case of marijuana use.

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