function onPlayerReadyVidible(e){'undefined'!=typeof HPTrack&&HPTrack.Vid.Vidible_track(e)}!function(e,i){if(e.vdb_Player){if('object'==typeof commercial_video){var a='',o='m.fwsitesection='+commercial_video.site_and_category;if(a+=o,commercial_video['package']){var c='&m.fwkeyvalues=sponsorship%3D'+commercial_video['package'];a+=c}e.setAttribute('vdb_params',a)}i(e.vdb_Player)}else{var t=arguments.callee;setTimeout(function(){t(e,i)},0)}}(document.getElementById('vidible_1'),onPlayerReadyVidible); NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell thinks marijuana is addictive and generally bad for football players, and wont change his stance until his advisers prove that its medically beneficial.Goodell wouldnt budge when questioned on ESPN Radios Mike and Mike Friday morning, claiming that he had the players safety in mind.Listen, youre ingesting smoke so that is not usually a very positive thingit does have an addictive nature, he said. 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.Hes long been criticized for his strict handling of marijuana use in the league. The NFL Players Association is down with dope as a tool for pain management, as are many NFL coaches.Heck, most of the nation is pretty lax about marijuana use these days.But Goodell is known to hand down extreme suspensionsfor any hint of THC in a players bloodstream. All the while, players are complaining that theyre being fed huge amounts of highly addictive prescription painkillersfor pain management, according to Deadspin.Research shows marijuana may be the least dangerous of recreational drugs, including tobacco and alcohol, and can be even less addictive than caffeine.Painkillers like Vicodin, meanwhile, are classified as potentially very habit-forming.Apparently, Goodell needs his medical advisers to prove not only that weed isnt that bad, but that it has medical benefits for football players. He told Mike and Mike:We look at it from a medical standpoint. 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 well sit down and talk about that. But weve been studying that through our advisers. To date, they havent said this is a change we think you should make thats in the best interests of the health and safety of our players. If they do, were certainly going to consider that. But to date, they havent really said that.The health and safety of NFL players has indeed been a topic of interest over the past few years, but not because of reefer. Traumatic brain injuries are a growing problem among players, and Goodell is consistently raked over the coals for his apparent inability to focus his attention on concussions and CTE.But then again, weed.To be fair, Goodell did open the floor for later discussion about marijuana, likely due to the fact that seemingly everyone else is on board.Medical marijuana is something thats evolving, he said, and thats something that at some point the medical advisers may say this is something you should consider. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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