Professional athletes? Smoking marijuana cigarettes? The horror!
Thankfully, the National Football League has begun to emerge from America’s enduring and ridiculous Reefer Madness-induced hysteria, and loosen its restrictions on marijuana use. Per the newly ratified CBA, when players are drug tested during the initial window of April 20 through August 9, they will not be tested for THC, the active ingredient in mari-ja-wanna.
But according to a new report from Mike Florio at Pro Football Talk, that particular message wasn’t conveyed to players properly. A text from the NFLPA to players reminded them that they’re required to undergo testing for substances of abuse whenever they return to their team’s facility, but failed to mention the exception for marijuana.
“Players who use marijuana became immediately concerned, given that one of the attractions of the new CBA came from the shrinking and the delay of the once-per-year marijuana testing window until the start of training camp until the first preseason game,” Florio wrote. “Based on the amount of time that it takes to metabolize THC, plenty of players were looking at a potential positive test.”
Matt Dolloff is a writer and podcaster for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Yell at him on Twitter @mattdolloff and follow him on Instagram @mattydsays. You can also email him at mdolloff@985thesportshub.com.