One of the partners in the company preparing to open Carson City’s first medical marijuana dispensary is former National Football League offensive tackle Eugene Monroe.
Monroe was released by the Baltimore Ravens after injuries that forced him to miss 15 games in the last two seasons. He decided to retire after seven seasons citing, among other things, the repeated concussions he suffered during his career.
In addition to being an investor in Green Thumb Industries, which plans to open Rise, a dispensary in Carson City in September, he has become an advocate calling on the NFL and other professional sports leagues to reverse the ban on allowing players to use medical marijuana.
He said 18 years of injuries during games and practice all the way from high school through his pro career have left him with chronic pain and he said he’s far from alone.
He said, however, he didn’t want to use opioids doctors commonly prescribe for pain such as what he suffers. He found an alternative in marijuana but said his advocacy for it didn’t sit well with his team’s owners.
“Those are very addictive,” he said. “Cannabis is much safer, less toxic, less addictive.”
He said he and many other players would prefer marijuana: “There are thousands of guys that are suffering.”
“It’s time for the league to move past (the opioids) and give players the option if they live in a state where it’s legal.”
