Taking Sides: Should NFL Players be Allowed to Smoke Marijuana?

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DENVER – With the Broncos on the minds of Denver sports fans, a thought to ponder about our favorite professional football players might cross our minds. Should National Football League players be allowed to smoke marijuana?

It would only be fitting to go on a college campus in a state that has legalized said drug to ask the community’s opinion. Metro State student “Man on the Street” Daniel Grein doesn’t believe so.
“I do not believe they should be allowed to smoke weed,” Grein said. “I think that they are role models to society, and they should be on their best behavior 24-7.”

Here in Colorado, smoking of recreational marijuana was legalized in November 2012.

Another man on the street, Brandon Hart, thinks a little differently than Grein. “It’s not even about being role models,” Hart said. “It’s in the rule book of the NFL (National Football League), so they just shouldn’t do it. No ifs, ands or buts.”

Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller, who is the stud of the revamped “Orange Crush” defense, was suspended by the National Football League for violating league policy for suspected drug use. That drug, was thought to be marijuana.

“He shouldn’t be doing it,” Hart said. “Simple as that.”

Not only the topic of marijuana use by football players, but a billboard was put up outside of Sports Authority Field Sept. 5, by the Marijuana Policy Project to encourage the notion. The billboard (that can be seen in the photo on the right) reads, “Stop Driving Our Players to Drink. A Safer choice is now legal (here).”

“If I would have seen that billboard, I would not have been happy,” Grein said.

The billboard is said to have upset many in the Denver community, but to the chagrin of many fans and residents, it still resides outside of where the Denver Broncos call homefield.