The Baltimore Ravens had several understandable reasons for cutting veteran offensive tackle Eugene Monroe.
After all, Monroe is 29, which in football terms is far from young. And he’s injury-prone, having missed 15 games the last two seasons. Plus, the Ravens used the No. 6 overall pick in the draft on Notre Dame offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley. Oh, and Monroe was slated to cost the Ravens $6.5 million in salary cap space.
So yeah, nobody needed any further explanation for why the team was parting ways with a so-so player. But instead, the team felt the need to establish on its website that Monroe’s thoughts on public policy within a particular realm may have played a role in the decision.
Monroe had surgery to repair a torn labrum (shoulder) this offseason, and used the time off to become the first active NFL player to openly campaign for the use of medical marijuana. The Ravens did not rally behind the cause.
“I promise you, he does not speak for the organization,” Head Coach John Harbaugh said this offseason.
Considering that marijuana has been legalized in several states and is legal for medicinal purposes in several more, and considering that society has come a long way in terms of accepting weed as something that wasn’t sent up from the Satan himself, that’s a bit of an over-the-top response.
Look, the Ravens know they screwed up when they kept Ray Rice on the roster for seven whole months after Rice slugged his girlfriend in an elevator. But it’s clear that ever since, the organization has overcompensated when it comes to off-the-field shenanigans.
It was one thing when John Harbaugh quickly declared last year that Greg Hardy would never be a Raven, but this is a little ridiculous. Within reason, players shouldn’t be penalized for taking public stances on popular political issues, especially if those stances have become prominent in mainstream society.
Right now, the Ravens are coming off as the parents from Footloose.
