If it helps the players, Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll is all for it.
Even if “it” includes the use of marijuana, which is illegal — even medicinally — in 30 states, though it is recreationally legal in Colorado and Washington. Carroll tiptoed around a question during a press conference about the NFL permitting the use of medical marijuana to help players suffering from concussions, but he made it clear he would be in favor of its use if it’s beneficial.
“I would say that we have to explore and find ways to make our game a better game and take care of our players in whatever way possible,” Carroll said on Monday. “Regardless of what other stigmas might be involved, we have to do this because the world of medicine is doing this.”
The question was posed after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he would consider allowing the use of marijuana if it helped players dealing with concussions. The fact that the drug is only medically legal in 20 states and the District of Columbia complicates matters, however.
The Seahawks are preparing to face the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII. Seahawks defensive end Michael Bennett was also questioned about marijuana. Bennett didn’t take the question as seriously as Carroll.
“Is marijuana legal in Washington?” Bennett asked. “I don’t really watch the news too much.”
