Eugene Monroe is widely regarded as the first active NFL player to openly challenge the league’s prohibition on cannabis and press for its use in pain management and brain health. His advocacy is rooted in his experience as a lineman dealing with chronic pain, concussions, and the side effects of conventional pharmaceuticals, especially opioids.
Early courage and risk
While still under contract, Monroe began speaking publicly in 2016 about removing cannabis from the NFL’s banned substances list. He framed his position as not only a medical argument but a moral and pragmatic one: the league’s overreliance on opioid prescriptions creates risks of addiction and long-term harm, and cannabis may offer a safer alternative. He understood the professional danger: speaking out might jeopardize his roster standing, and that was clear to him and others at the time.
Monroe’s willingness to go public enabled him to be a lightning rod—not without backlash. His coach publicly distanced the team from his views, and questions arose over whether his advocacy contributed to his release from the Baltimore Ravens that summer. Upon being cut, he weighed offers but ultimately announced retirement in July 2016, citing mounting physical and neurological concerns.
Strategic activism after retirement
Once retired, Monroe redoubled his efforts. He became a public-facing advocate, combining journalism, philanthropy, and entrepreneurial ventures. He partnered with medical cannabis enterprises, such as VapeXhale, to help develop delivery technologies tailored for athletes. Furthermore, he also invested in Green Thumb Industries and launched cannabis-related business initiatives, seeking to align activism with industry credibility.
Monroe has donated to academic research, including to teams at Johns Hopkins and the University of Pennsylvania, to explore cannabinoids’ effects on chronic brain injury and pain. He also became an “athletics ambassador” for Doctors for Cannabis Regulation and was a lead signatory in an open letter urging the NFL to reconsider its cannabis policy.
Through his platform, Monroe emphasizes four intersecting themes:
- Pain and opioid alternatives — Monroe promotes cannabis as a less toxic substitute to opioids, arguing that football’s injury burden should prompt more humane therapeutic options.
- Neuroprotection and brain health — Drawing upon emerging studies, he asserts that cannabinoids might offer protective effects against concussion damage and degeneration like CTE.
- Destigmatization and education — Monroe sees stigma as a main barrier. He consistently calls for broad education, policy reform, and normalization in sports and society.
- Social equity in cannabis industry — Over time, he has also pushed to address racial and economic disparities in cannabis business ownership, especially elevating entrepreneurs of color.
Impact and legacy
Monroe’s influence has rippled across the NFL–cannabis intersection. He helped open doorways for other former and current players (e.g. Derrick Morgan) to express support. The NFL, meanwhile, has incrementally shifted its policy: the 2020 NFL–NFLPA collective bargaining agreement raised THC thresholds and reduced punitive measures for cannabis detection.
Critics argue that clinical evidence is still nascent, regulatory frameworks are unsettled, and that sports leagues must balance image, safety, and fairness. Yet Monroe’s approach—anchored in his legitimacy as a former player, his personal suffering, and strategic alliances—gave moral weight to a movement once confined to the margins. In a league long tethered to drug-zero rhetoric, his voice remains a reference point in debates about pain, policy, and the future of athlete health.