When NFL fans think of players and cannabis use, former Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams probably comes to mind, or even Super Bowl champion Chris Long.

Williams and Long have spoken out at length about using cannabis for a variety of reasons, including pain management over other pain relievers that have been pushed in the past.

Pro Football Hall of Famer Champ Bailey is also among a group of former NFL stars advocating cannabis use as a physical and mental recovery tool. Bailey is a community outreach liaison for Trulieve, the world’s largest cannabis retailer.

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The former Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos standout told Pakinomist Digital in a recent interview he partnered with Trulieve to help the company secure a license in Georgia. Since its completion, Bailey has been tasked with educating the public about marijuana and breaking the stigma around it.

Bailey played in the NFL from 1999 to 2013. He was a 12-time Pro Bowler, a three-time first-team All-Pro selection and was named to the Hall of Fame All-2000s team. He said he started using cannabis to help him early in his career.

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“But luckily for me, I stayed away from it until I was mature enough to really participate in it. And it wasn’t until my second, third year in Washington when I was exposed to it. I always had some exposure To it from a social point of view, but I never participated in it.

“But when I saw professionals like myself doing it, I felt more inclined to try. First, I didn’t want to go down the path of alcoholism or addicted to any drugs. So I made it a point to .. . Let’s just review before I go Me, it was just, ‘How do I bounce back and stay at the top of my game?’ This helped me do that.

Denver Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey (24) warms up before the start of a game against the Cleveland Browns at Invesco Field in Denver, Colo., September 20, 2009. (Ron Chenoy/USA Today Sports)

“Fortunately for me, I found something that benefited me, and it’s more now, ‘How do I educate people on what it did for me so they can potentially look at it as a positive application for them?’ But of course everyone has to go their own way.

“I talked to mine about it. So it’s one of those things. Let’s stop being shy about talking about it and potentially go down that road. The only way you’re going to learn is to be open and honest about your use or your interest in using.

Bailey explained to Pakinomist Digital that his mission was to break the stigma of indulging in the drug, which was illegal in most states before 2012. Washington and Colorado were the first states to legalize recreational marijuana use, and California was the first state to legalize medical cannabis In 1996.

Bailey said he uses himself as an example.

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“I’m a good example. I really just use my story to make people understand,” he told Pakinomist Digital. “But then it also encourages others to tell their story. I’m not the only guy who played football, basketball or any pro sport and uses cannabis. A lot of guys do it more than you think. But by one or second reason is athletes Put on this pedestal and we all have to walk this fine line and appear to look clean.

“Well, cannabis is part of our regiment for a lot of us. So using these stories helps See it as a gateway drug, and I’m like, ‘Well, if that’s the case, why haven’t I used that gateway to do something else that is harmful to me and a lot of my guys who have done the same thing?’ These are the ways you break those stigmas.

Dealing with teammates in an NFL locker room is a little different, but less difficult to show.

An NFL team is made of players of different backgrounds, creeds, beliefs and viewpoints. If someone smokes marijuana, which was mostly illegal and against NFL rules when Bailey played, a player would get the side eye.

Former professional football player Champ Bailey speaks with a fan during a name calling event at FedEx Field in Landover, Md., Sept. 10, 2023. (Brent Skeen/USA Today Sports)

“I played a long time, so I got to see a lot of different personalities and different beliefs and where people come from. There’s no more diverse environment than being in an NFL locker room. The guys would find that some of us smoke , and they were horrified until they really see, ‘Oh, this is actually working for them,’ because they’re able to stay dialed in to what we’re doing. OK.

“So that’s how we were able to break them in the locker room. But it takes strong leadership and really standing up for what you believe in because again it was illegal and it was against the rules to do that. I wanted to Never go out of my way to encourage anyone to do it (at the time) If you are curious, talk to someone about it, especially your doctor, go from there.

Skirting the rules was another matter.

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Ricky Williams was one of the top running backs in the NFL in the prime of his career. He lost games and even a season for his failed drug tests for marijuana.

Bailey suggested that NFL players who were using the drug at the time knew when the tests were taking place and stopped using marijuana before they were tested.

“They were very strict back then, but I wouldn’t say in a way they’d catch you. Like we knew when the tests were coming, so we’d always stop at a certain time, like… even at the time you Realize it was detrimental to my recovery because the times we had to quit were during the season they would have these annual tests.

“It’s one of those times when you work harder than you work during the season because you’re training to get back in shape, and those are the times you really want it,” he said. “I just remembered guys always talking about what we had to stop when. Some guys would be tested earlier than others, so guys would get back on it and others were still waiting. That, but we stuck all of them – those who used – and we made sure that we all got through it.

Champ Bailey before a game between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colo., on Oct. 6, 2024. (Ron Chenoy/Imagn photos)

“Some passed, others did. We’ve all had our experiences with the drug program in the league. But for better or worse, it was a waste of time. When you look back on it, I think the league realized they wasted a lot of resources on something that could actually benefit us, and things have changed since about what it means to use cannabis.”

Bailey said he has seen how marijuana use helped firsthand.

He recalled a teammate who was going through a drinking problem when he turned him on to marijuana.

“He knew I was consuming, so it was more that he wanted to find out what was better,” he said. “And when he started doing it, he was like ‘man, I’ve been missing out.’ And it became his vice, so to speak, because now he realized that this actually contributed to this success.

“He ended up playing double-digit years in the league, great career. So no regrets there. I was just happy enough that I was able to show him there was a better way. And there’s a lot of stories guys have about other interactions they had.

Bailey said he would encourage more people to learn about the benefits of cannabis.

“It’s not what it was taught 20-30 years ago,” he told Pakinomist Digital. “I think people are turning the corner. We just have to keep telling our stories. If you’re a user, talk about it and educate people about why you use it and how it benefits you. The more we can tell them Stories, the better we are.

Washington Redskins running back Ladell Betts (46) runs past Denver Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey (24) in the third quarter at FedEx Field in Landover, Md., Nov. 15, 2009. (Geoff Burke/USA Today Sports)

“I think that’s why my vision is so good with Trulieve, because they believe in the same thing. It’s not all about pushing their brand. It’s more, ‘How do we get people around to what can cannabis do for you and really see it as a benefit to society and not a negative thing?