Oft-suspended NFL defensive lineman Randy Gregory is challenging the league's policy that required him to pay $532,000 in fines for using the FDA-approved Schedule II drug Dronabinol for social anxiety disorder and PTSD while he played for the the Denver Broncos in 2023. Dronabinol is synthetic cannabis in pill form.
The request to use Dronabinol was denied, called "off label" and "not an acceptable medical explanation for a positive THC test." In May of last year, Gregory's agent submitted a TUE request (therapeutiuc use exemption) for Dronabinol to the NFL and the NFL Players Association (NFLPA). That request was rejected as well.
The court document filed by the Broncos and the NFL states:
In assessing Plaintiff's claim that the fines he received for violating the policy should be rescinded, the Court would have to evaulate not only the sufficiency of his TUE request, but also whether it complied with the Policy's requirement that "the applicant may not begin use of the prohibited substance until after the TUE is granted."
Plaintiff Gregory claims he was subjected to "continuous drug testing, discipline and fines."
The NFL should drop this case and refund Gregory after all of the strife the league has caused him and his career.
Starting in 2016 while with the Cowboys, Gregory was hit was with a series of suspensions over failed drug tests for THC and forced to sit out the 2017 and 2019 seasons. In 2020, the NFL relaxed its drug-testing policy for cannabis positives.
Despite this change in policy negotiated with the NFLPA, the defendants contend, "THC can lead to on-the-field injuries, to alienation of fans and diminished job performance" as an NFL player.
Essentially, the defendants say Gregory failed to received a TUE and took the drug anyway. Had his request been accepted, the fines would never have been levied. The NFL should drop this case and refund Gregory after all of the strife the league has caused him and his career.
Gregory signed a one-deal with Tampa Bay for the 2024-2025 season.
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