A PLAYERS PERSPECTIVE: BETWEEN THE HASH MARKS- KYLE TURLEY

“There’s nothing like the cannabis industry. It’s a truly inclusive thing that brings everybody together in health and wealth. If the media would only allow us to show what we’re really doing, it would change everything.” - Kyle

Turley

Kyle Turley is a former American football offensive tackle who played nine seasons in the NFL for the New Orleans Saints, the St. Louis Rams and the Kansas City Chiefs before announcing his retirement in 2007. He moved to California in 2014 to seek treatment after suffering from a plethora of neurological and orthopedic issues, as a result of constant impact to the head and body, as well as side effects from the harmful medications prescribed by NFL physicians. That is, the same physicians that prohibit the use of cannabis amongst NFL players.

WHEN ASKED IF HE THINKS THE NFL IS RECEIVING KICKBACKS FROM THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES TO KEEP THEIR PLAYERS MEDICATED, KYLE’S RESPONSE WAS CHILLING...

“100%, there’s no doubt. They’ve been on the forefront of pharmaceuticals basic testing labs. We’re professional athletes. What better way to see how a new medication works? I was on medications they took off the shelves worldwide due to side effects.”

- Kyle Turley

A quick google search affirmed Kyle’s suspicions, dating back to at least 2003, when the NFL signed a $6 million agreement with Bayer HealthCare and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals.

‘’The NFL is our ideal partner’’ said Nancy K. Bryan, a Vice President of Marketing for Bayer

‘’We’ll be able to reach 120 million fans each week.’’

- The New York Times

‘’They lend instant credibility to the product,’’ said Michael Kelley, managing director for the New York office of Relay Sports and Event Marketing

‘’I don’t think their primary goal is getting men to go to the doctor. It’s about selling their product.’’

- New York Times

“Opioid use is out of control in the NFL.” According to a Washington University study, 52% of players consumed prescribed opioids during their careers in 2011.

- bucsreport.com

Kyle Turley Goes On The Offense Presenting Medical Evidence In Support Of Cannabis Use To The Nfl Commission

In 2020, the NFL made a public announcement that there would be a meeting held to discuss the use of cannabis amongst players. Kyle boldly took the opportunity, and applied to address the group in an effort to change their stance on testing their athletes. Kyle presented the medical benefits of cannabis alongside some of the biggest names in the industry, not only to NFL, but to the Head of Neurology for the US Military, Head of Emergency Medicine, Head of Neurology at Vanderbilt University in TN, and the Head of Neuro Psychology.

It was a massive success, or so it seemed, when the NFL put out a press release later that evening. Sporting News reported “A lot will change with the NFL’s new collective bargaining agreement, including a new drug policy in which players will no longer be suspended for positive marijuana tests.”

SPONSOR DOLLARS PROVE TO BE MORE VALUABLE THAN PLAYERS

As the NFL season kicked off in 2021, Pfizer’s marketing strategy to promote COVID-19 vaccine, Comirnaty, went the extra yard. Data found by iSpot’s analysis that since Aug. 22, 2021, ads for Comirnaty aired 749 times on national linear TV, while nearly 30% of Comirnaty TV ad impressions appeared during NFL games, and over 63% of national TV ad spend was allocated toward the NFL in 2021 alone, according to FiercePharma.com.

WHILE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES CONTINUE TO SPONSOR THE NFL, CANNABIS COMPANIES HAVE BEEN AVIDLY REJECTED...

In Fact, the NFL turned down 2 major offers from cannabis companies to buy the naming rights of the Denver Broncos Stadium, while accepting a lesser offer in 2019.

Under the NFL’s current guidelines, teams are banned from pursuing business deals with medical marijuana or CBD companies, whether in the form of sponsorship agreements or advertisements.

“A change to the NFL’s policy on marijuanarelated deals is not being contemplated”

- NFL Spokesman Brian McCarthy told FOX Business.

New Regulations In The 2022 Nfl Season

Staying true to their word, the NFL will no longer suspend players for testing positive for marijuana, and the league has developed new regulations, raising the threshold for THC from 35 ng/ml to 150 ng/ml.

However, players will still be tested, and if found to have over 150 ng/ml, will be fined up to 3 games pay. A hefty fee for consuming a medicinal plant found in nature, all while continuing to prescribe dangerous medications, owned by NFL sponsors.

JIM MCMAHON, EVIDENCE THROUGH EXPERIENCE; A PERSONAL JOURNEY OF HEALING WITH CANNABIS

“We are not here to fight, we are here to work with, educate and support the NFL, on how cannabis and CBD products can be utilized for the wellbeing of players in the league. It’s important to have an understanding that the people we love so dearly, loved the game, and we want to help them in their pursuit of well being.”

- Jim McMahon

Jim McMahon is an American former football star quarterback, 2X Super Bowl Champion, 2X All American, who played in the NFL for 15 seasons, most notably for the Chicago Bears, and retired in 1996.

Now involved with the Gridiron Greats, Jim is a cannabis supporter and advocate.

Jim Moved to Arizona in 2010 when cannabis became medically legal, obtained his medical license, and was able to get off the harmful painkillers he had grown to be dependent on for decades. Over the years, Jim met with Dr. Uma Dhanabalan, a Harvard graduate with 40-years of experience who understands the human healing process with Integrative Cannabinology, Functional Endocannabinology and Cannabinoid Medicine, and was able to explain the endocannabinoid system, and help Jim fully understand the benefits of cannabis. www.Totalhealthcarethc.com

Jim explains, “This cannabis plant has so many healing properties to it, it’s not a drug, it’s a medicinal herb. The NFL has known for a while how powerful this is. We’ve been lied to for over 100 years, and the government has a patent on it.”

Hearing this, many people may be in disbelief, or think it to be a conspiracy theory, but he is in fact absolutely correct. Patent No. 6,630,507 was granted in 2003 to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, covering the potential use of cannabinoids to protect the brain from physical damage or degeneration caused by certain diseases, such as Cirrhosis or Alzheimer’s disease.

“Cannabinoids are found to have particular application as neuroprotectants, for example in limiting neurological damage following ischemic insults, such as stroke and trauma, or in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, HIV and Dementia.”

- patents.google.com

After sustaining multiple concussions and serious injuries including a broken neck, folded sternum, severe brain, shoulder and neck damage, Jim retired in 1996. cannabistalkmagazine.com

“(Upon Retirement) You could stay on insurance for another year or two and then you were done. After that I couldn’t get insurance and if I did, my premium was through the roof. I had to wait 10 years just to have shoulder surgery. I had 12-14 surgeries during the NFL, and 6 since. I believe cannabis helped me with my rehabilitation.

” - Jim McMahon

“Mike Ditka was my old coach, and got me involved in the Gridiron Greats. For all things said about him, he has a huge heart.”

- Jim McMahon

Mike Ditka, who’s credits to the game of football are as long as his career itself, is an American former football player, Hall of Famer, 3x Superbowl Champion, 2× NFL Coach of the Year, and television commentator. Now, Mike Ditka is giving back to the athletes that served as the foundation on which the sport survives, through the Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund. www.gridirongreats.org

The Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund (GGAF) was founded to serve those in need, who played for the NFL, risking body and mind for the love of the game, but were discarded in many ways upon injury or retirement.

What many don’t realize is that if a player is not on the active roster by game 1 of year 4, due to injury, the NFL does nothing to help with the cost of surgeries, medical bills, medication, or even pension. And what’s even more shocking, is that the average NFL career is only 3 ½ years; meaning the average professional football athlete, many of which have sustained permanent neuro and physical injuries equivalent to numerous car crashes, and are unable to work, and left to plead for government disability assistance. Moreover, many players are often denied their disability benefits. And ‘Pre-93’ers, regardless of the length of their career, were given no retirement benefits, pension, or medical assistance at all.

“The worst injuries are the ones you really don’t see, that come in the form of a concussion, or getting your bell rung or getting knocked out, but they come back to haunt them 10 or 15 years later when they really have severe (neurological) problems.”

- Mike Ditka

WE, AS SPECTATORS, SEE PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES AS UNTOUCHABLE LARGER THAN LIFE FIGURES. WE SEE THEIR NAMES IN LIGHTS, AND ON THE BACKS OF JERSEYS AND MERCHANDISE, LIVING WHAT MANY CONSIDER THE ULTIMATE DREAM. BUT FOR MANY, THAT DREAM IS ALL BUT AN ILLUSION.

But it doesn’t stop there, as discussed previously, the NFL has been sponsored by Big Pharma for decades, and denied players the opportunity to substitute addictive opiates and other harmful medications with safe, natural alternatives, such as cannabis.

“Mike Ditka was the first to support me in my fight for cannabis over 10 years ago, leading to the events we are now able to host at the Super Bowl and he supports Jim (McMahon) and I as if we were his sons”

- Kyle Turley

“My man, Kyle Turley, toughest guy I’ve ever known” - Mike

Ditka

“It took great fans to build the empire that is American Football, and it will take great fans to help us overcome the epidemic that is facing our Greats right now. Thank you for your support.” -