More NFL Players Are Advocating for CBD Use
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a natural health supplement, and many current and former NHL athletes are advocating for its use, specifically as a pain and inflammation supplement for its effectiveness and because it is much less risky than opioid medications.
As research over the past two decades has revealed the benefits that CBD has to offer, NFL athletes and advocates have pushed the league to legalize its use among players. Before, it was banned due to its connection to marijuana. Back in 2020, the NFL and Players Association struck a new deal as part of their Collective Bargaining Agreement to allow its players to use CBD. It was a major achievement for both the players and the CBD industry.
Since then, several current and former NFL players have revealed how they use or support the industry. Some have been open about their CBD use and their reasons why. Others have either invested in various CBD companies and products, or launched their own. Former players, like Terrell Davis, have also talked about how taking things like CBD capsules could have prolonged their careers due to its ability to help with recovery from injuries and workouts. Here are three NFL players and how they are advocating for CBD use among football players.Baker Mayfield
Quarterback Baker Mayfield of the Cleveland Browns is one of the biggest stars in the game to step into the CBD world, and the most recent. Back in 2020, Mayfield announced that he was both an investor and endorser for Beam, a CBD product company that makes several health supplements. Mayfield discovered the company through his brother, but he also credits Beam’s products for his recovery from previous injuries without affecting his performance. He has noted that he first trusted the company because the founders have backgrounds as professional athletes.
Derrick Morgan
Derrick Morgan was an NFL linebacker with the Tennessee Titans for nine seasons, ending in 2018. Back in 2016, Morgan was the second active NFL player to openly push for the NFL to legalize its use for its players. He was one of the foremost athletes who paved the way for the NFL’s decision to reach the aforementioned agreement with the NFLPA in 2020.
Towards the end of his career, he revealed that he regularly used CBD as part of his training. He has since become a very public advocate for its use among other NFL players, specifically when it comes to recovering and protecting the brain from concussions and other head injuries.
Rob Gronkowski
Gronkowski is at the end of his NFL career, but he may compete with Baker Mayfield as far as name recognition among NFL fans. He was another outspoken supporter for CBD use and to raise awareness for its benefits and safety. That support only grew when he made a comeback to the NFL in 2020, after retiring in 2019. His retirement came after a long and gruelling NFL career, after he suffered several injuries to his knees, arms, and back.
Gronkowski noted that he tried CBD after suffering an injury playing soccer for fun during his retired season, and fell in love with it. He has said that he isn’t sure if it would have helped his performance or prolonged his career, but did say it would have helped him deal with the regular pain that comes from weeks of practices and games and the physical punishment that comes with it.
These three current and former NFLers are by far not the only ones advocating for the benefits of CBD, but they are some of the most important and high-profile players that are raising awareness among players and the league. In time, you may see more partnerships, sponsorships, research and startups that will provide untold benefits to the sport and everyone involved with it.
