This interview first appeared in the Sports Edition of Fat Nugs Magazine, released May 2024. Gilbert was interviewed by Daniel Crawford and Kellie Frederick.
Gilbert Brown, aka The Gravedigger, is a retired NFL Superbowl Champion and was a key defender for the Green Bay Packers. He played in the NFL from 1993–2003, playing in 125 games and starting in 103 of those.
Kellie and Daniel from the Fat Nugs team sat down with Gilbert to discuss how cannabis consumption looks for an NFL veteran 20 years post-retirement.
An Interview with Gilbert Brown, The Gravedigger
Daniel: I wanted to talk to you about cannabis and your relationship with the plant. When did you first find cannabis in your life? Was it earlier on or was it after your career?
Gilbert: The first time was when I met Megan. I’d never touched it, smoked it. I smelled it a few times, but that was about it.
Daniel: When was that?
Gilbert: I’m a guy who always thought that I could do things better without touching the stuff. I’ve been around teammates, doing what they need to do, but I always fought the peer pressure, never touching it until I met Megan. [Gilbert and Megan met during a podcast in the Fall of 2023.]
Athletics and Cannabis
Daniel: What were some of the stigmas of being an athlete and using cannabis?
Gilbert: In my world, if you touch it, there are consequences. You’re going to fail a drug test, you may even go to jail if it’s in your car. You know, I’m from Detroit. There is a stigma attached to getting into trouble, I had to abstain.
Daniel: What are the main benefits you have experienced since you started to consume cannabinoids?
Gilbert: It didn’t happen overnight, but during the process of watching what it does to me, the main benefit was with my inflammation. I have knees that swell, ankles that swell, and my face swells too, but that’s because I eat too much.
One of the things I learned is that I can take cannabis without taking Motrin and other things that are harmful to your kidneys and have other side effects. In my line of work, pain medication is big–during and especially after football.
Daniel: The 90s were especially bad.
Gilbert: Yeah, and I have brain fog. We didn’t have concussion protocols and all kinds of stuff the NFL has today. I told Megan about a story where one day I went around with my son two or three times before I came out of the haze.
Megan told me of the benefits, she got me to try it, and I believed in it. That’s why I’m sitting here today, because if it can help me, it can help the normal average person, I’m on board!
Kellie: To clarify, your only method of consumption is tincture- you’re not smoking?
Gilbert: Yes. I have friends who have been telling me they’re going to take me to Colorado and they’re going to take me somewhere else, but I’m still scared of the stuff [THC].
Daniel: Are you using your tincture pre or post-recovery? Or is it for overall health and wellness every single day?
Gilbert: You can’t do what you used to do at my age anymore. So, trying to maintain and do certain things, you still get those aches and pains, you still get swelling, When conventional medicine doesn’t work, you have got to find ways to stay relevant in anything you do.
With this part of it (holds up tincture), the thing that really got me on board is because my mama has got carpal tunnel and a bunch of other health issues. And when you’re seeing things get better, this stuff, with its healing properties, it’s kind of like, “Whoa!”
I know people who smoke because of the pain aspect of it and what it does for certain illnesses. The misconception of marijuana, weed, or whatever you want to call it, is so bad. Because if you have a guy like myself who has never touched it, but now I’m talking about it and on board because of its healing properties, you got to listen.
Daniel: Would you consider yourself a cannabis advocate now?
Gilbert: I can’t say anything about the smoking part of it because I ain’t never done it. I’m glad Megan convinced me because we know a number of people who grew up during the 80s and you were told “just say no” and every dude is gonna fry their brain, people smoke weed and they will go crazy, or they kill people. We’ve been fed all these stories.
Kellie: And like you said, our parents’ generation told us, just don’t do it, just don’t mess with it. And we had no idea.
Gilbert: I’m stuck on two sides of it because you have the parents part, but then you have the athletics part.
Gilbert Brown Talks Cannabis & Kids
Daniel: So as a father now, how do you approach conversations with your kids and cannabis?
Gilbert: My children can’t consume because they are athletes. They do have friends that vape and everything, but I would tell them, it depends on what you’re doing it for. If it’s for illness, then I’m on board with it. If you consume, you better be damn sure you know where it came from.
Daniel: As an advocate for responsible cannabis use, what changes would you like to see regarding professional sports and their tolerance or lack thereof for cannabis?
Gilbert: I would love to see more professional athletes use tinctures because I don’t know if they would ever legalize the smoking part of it, but this part of it, helps so much. There is still a stigma of it being marijuana period, and most people don’t get it yet. You need guys like me, pushing this part of the plant, educating about both parts of the plant, the pluses and the minuses.
I’ve seen friends hooked on opioids and pain pills, even things for inflammation and to be able to have an alternative that’s natural without worrying about your kidneys getting damaged. I was a big Motrin guy, using it for every pain I got. The funny part about it is, I can’t remember the last time I took a Motrin since using my tincture.
