Marijuana Is Now Legal In Colorado And Washington, But The NFL Will Still Suspend You For It

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has often been called a tyrant, a sheriff and a bunch of other names to demonstrate how he rules his league with absolute, often unnecessary amounts of power. And with his new stance on recent developments in the legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado and Washington, something tells me that is going to continue.

According to a USA Today report, even though both states have legalized the use of marijuana and have allowed their residents over 21 years of age to possess one ounce of the substance, the NFL will not budge on its substance abuse policy, which can suspend players as many as four games for testing positive for substances that include the newly legalized drug.

So, to be clear here, you can take part in a substance that is now legal in those states, and Roger Goodell will still find a way to intimidate you into becoming one of his shining beacons of morality in shoulder pads.

This is why, despite the fact that other commissioners are way less competent than Goodell is (looking at you, Gary Bettman), he is still by far the most hated of the four major sports commissioners.

He should have zero right to punish his workers for doing something that is legal in the states they are in, unless they came into work under the influence. In cases such as that, the circumstances would be the same as if you or I came into our jobs intoxicated, which would be more than fair.

With that said, something tells me that Peyton Manning wouldn't be getting baked before getting ready to watch game film just because of this new law, so stopping players from doing something legally just to interject your moral influence into the lives of those who make you rich is pathetic.

If I were an NFL player, I would challenge this ruling by the league because, again, they are trying to stop players from doing something that is now legal. Last time I checked, an employer has no right to tell its employees what they can do when not working, so long as what they are doing isn't illegal.

This is just another episode of Roger Goodell trying to intimidate the players of his league into bending to his every whim. After the pathetic "investigation" into the New Orleans Saints alleged bounty program and openly contradicting himself on his concern for player safety multiple times, things like this have unfortunately become nothing new.