Yeah, one makes you bigger, faster stronger. The other makes you hungry and lethargic. I can see why they would both come with the same penalty.
More to the point, I'm sure, one helps with pain management. Two players were literally carted off the field in tears this week. Maybe let the guys have something to ease their discomfort.
If it means he comes back fresh for the stretch run it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. They should be able to go 3-1. And hey at least he doesn't make the Denver trip now!
The Patriots were resting/protecting Sheard knowing that Branch was about to be suspended.
The League may be dumb.
There are no unannounced tests this time of year unless prior fails have put you "in the program".
The way to avoid this is to stay out of "the program". If you do that you can smoke all the weed you want from about June to the following April. The CBA prohibits testing for rec drugs during that period.
Apparently only if it's addictive and with a higher potential for destroying the life of the player and the family of the player, huh?
See above.
In keeping with the above, why? I mean, for a one off employment test, yeah. But we don't know why he was taking it, do we?
I do. In all seriousness: Why don't you?
Indeed. I mean, he's paying a lot of money for those hits, and as easy it is to say he's just dumb, we might stop an consider that he's a Belichick guy.
How callous did you mean this to sound?
Many private businesses test employees for recreational drugs, even in states with legal weed. I had to do a pre-employment drug screening for my last 2 jobs. Of course they say in the policy that you can be tested at any time for whatever reason. But I have never heard of that happening.
Yes. League certainly entitled to do what it does -- players agreed to it in CBA.
So was Chandler Jones, who went on walkabout in a drug-induced haze during a playoff week over synthetic weed.
Because as dumb as I think it is to suspend someone for marijuana use and as much disdain as I have for the rule and the league office, it is a pretty bright line collectively bargained rule and you have to test positive like four times to earn a suspension. Its not very hard as an NFL player to both smoke marijuana and not get caught/suspended for smoking marijuana.
Why is it OK to smoke weed and not get punished? If I tested positive for any type of drug, I get fired. Pain management is a BS excuse. It's a conscious choice to do this crap knowing the rules for it will get you popped. Athletes have plenty of time to do whatever they want when their playing careers are over with. It only hurts their playing time, wallets, and cost their teammates and coaches who will be without him for 4 games. I have no sympathy for athletes who do this.
Well, except for using marijuana while driving a car or flying a plane or something. Otherwise, I agree. If this were a message board about whatever it is RedOctober3829 does for a living, and he was fired for smoking pot in the privacy of his own home, I'd post about how dumb it was to have fired him.
Does it really matter how he got into the program or when? He failed 4 tests for recreational drugs and as a result is out 4 games and loses over a million dollars.
I'm not sure what you need for circumstances outside of the rule book.
They over doubled the threshold to avoid catching guys who may have come in contact with it or done a small amount and he still failed.
LeGarrette Blount might argue the case of his own 1-game suspension, for being generally aware of and nearby to LeVeon Bell when he was busted by the cops for drugs. There are other cases of circumstantial evidence being used to impart suspensions, e.g. the Al Jazeera report PEDs case.
Blount was arrested and agreed to get the charges dropped for by doing community service. There's other examples of players being arrested and getting suspended. Has Branch been arrested?
