Hard To Understand Tanard Jackson
July 10th, 2014
Busted again.
Yes, when Joe was in college, he enjoyed a beer now and then (ahem). And on occasions, perhaps a cocktail or two. This may come as a shock to some readers.
But Joe also knew he was in college for a reason; paying tuition out of his own wallet for a reason. And it wasn’t to be a lush. Joe was there to get an education and improve his life and hopefully set himself up in a field that he wanted to make a living in.
So pardon Joe if he just doesn’t understand how guys like former Bucs safety Tanard Jackson literally p!ssed down the toilet untold tens of millions of dollars, enough money to set himself up for life and even set up his future grandchildren, if not his immediate family, all totally thrown away because he couldn’t put down a bong (allegedly).
Yesterday was maybe the last straw the NFL had for Jackson, who again was popped for using drugs of some sort (Joe has lost count by now), and very likely has played his last snap of NFL football as a result. It is just mind-boggling to Joe. He truly doesn’t understand how someone willingly would throw away so much cash and financial security just so he could get the munchies and scarf down large bags of Doritos.
It seems the Custodian of Canton, eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune, is equally bewildered, taking to Twitter to scold the former Bucs player who was on the cusp of stardom when he was first suspended during what was to have been his contract year.
Tanard Jackson, you’ve got to be kidding. No wonder you fell to the fourth round of the 2007 draft. Those red flags at Syracuse were legit
— Ira Kaufman (@IKaufmanTBO) July 10, 2014
It is sad to the point that Joe has little to no sympathy for Jackson and others of his ilk. Now if a guy with little to no money with modest means cannot afford to get help and has some addiction, Joe feels for the guy. Jackson was earning a great living and had all the options available to him as a result of playing in the NFL.
The NFL and the players union bends over backwards to help players when they have an issue that requires help. You don’t think owners, who have hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in a player, don’t want to see him on the field? Players who don’t take advantage of those resources, and who still cannot put the bong down, well, in Joe’s eyes, they made their own bed.
July 10th, 2014 at 8:10 am
Its sad to see that this young man does not recognize his problem. What a huge wasted opportunity.
July 10th, 2014 at 8:23 am
This is not hard to understand! By now, everybody should realize that Tanard has a serious dependency problem – an addiction, not casual pot smoking! He can’t stop by himself. He needs professional help and short of an epiphany or serious life-changing event, he may never rid his demons. Had a family member with a drug addiction (emphasis on had). This is serious stuff. Forget football, I hope he eventually gets well!
July 10th, 2014 at 8:31 am
Unfortunately, the worst is yet to come.
This will not end well for him. No guarantee that rehab works.
There will most likely be a very unhappy ending to this story, yet to be written.
For him, pro football is now in the rear view mirror and the road ahead is far from smooth.
July 10th, 2014 at 8:38 am
Joe…..you just don’t understand substance abuse and how it can impact individuals differently….some much worse…suicide, homicide, rape….almost always wasted opportunities and a wasted life bringing misery to others all around.
Tanard Jackson isn’t really that unique….we just know him.
It will always be a mystery.
July 10th, 2014 at 8:47 am
Talent and character don’t always intersect Joe.
July 10th, 2014 at 9:15 am
Tom Edrington Says:
July 10th, 2014 at 8:31 am
Unfortunately, the worst is yet to come.
This will not end well for him. No guarantee that rehab works.
There will most likely be a very unhappy ending to this story, yet to be written.
For him, pro football is now in the rear view mirror and the road ahead is far from smooth.
—————-
There’s no guarantee he wants to get better.
July 10th, 2014 at 9:20 am
You can point at TJ and say what a shame. But the 2009 Bucs roster could turn the team hotel into a Cheech and Chong movie. ( allegedly )
July 10th, 2014 at 9:24 am
I’m with Joe on this. Quite frankly I don’t think it’s just kush he has a problem with. Dudes baby momma is in porn, that tells me the guy is reckless. FYI mattress actresses and strippers tend to gravitate to molly, blow and ex. So I’ve heard… That is all.
July 10th, 2014 at 9:26 am
If he was popped for weed again, then he’s an idiot. It was the same thing Ricky Williams would defiantly keep doing. Ricky wasn’t addicted, he just didn’t want to give it up. When he finally put down the bong he went on and had a decent career. Tanard has run out of time and will likely get a lifetime ban. How smoking weed can be such more important than earning a huge payday is just plain stupid. I don’t feel sorry for him at all.
July 10th, 2014 at 9:29 am
There is no such thing as a physical addiction to weed. If you want to stop, you just have to be mentally strong enough to stop. Its not like heroin or crack where you go through withdrawals.
There are plenty of people that can go about their day smoked up. (hand raised)
Every herbalist knows, too, that you sometimes need to take a tolerance break. Give your body and mind chance to recoup.
July 10th, 2014 at 9:44 am
Joe: ever consider that maybe just didn’t care about getting rich and/or playing in the NFL (a la ricky Williams during his hiatus?)
July 10th, 2014 at 9:48 am
“Mental illness is common among drug addicts. The relationship between mental health and drug abuse is so strong that many people believe the drugs cause the illness. In most cases, this is not true. People who have mental illness usually seek out the drugs to self-medicate. These people do not realize that their attempts only lead to a larger problem-addiction.”
July 10th, 2014 at 9:52 am
“People who are at risk for mental illness increase that risk when they chronically abuse drugs. Mental health risk factors include genetics, the environment, major life experiences and other things. People who already have high risk factors can be “pushed” into the mental illness by chronic substance abuse.”
And lets not forget-Ricky Williams was sexually abused by his own father!!!! So lets not be quick to judge.
July 10th, 2014 at 10:01 am
you can’t fix a crackhead.
it’s a helluva drug
July 10th, 2014 at 10:46 am
Not sad at all….. Who cares. He’s not the first, won’t be the last. Will always be someone to replace him. That’s life..
July 10th, 2014 at 11:08 am
“you can’t fix a crackhead.
it’s a helluva drug”
I thought we were talking weed and not crack. All drugs are not the same! Crack is one of the most addictive. Cigarettes are almost as difficult to stop as crack. Alcohol can also be incredibly addictive.
On a pure physical basis weed is one of the least addictive.
But the problems for Tanard run much deeper than simple physical addiction. He has major emotional and or mental issues. None of us were raised in his home and so we cannot understand or empathize.
I remember hiding under my bed at the age of 8 while my father beat the hell out of my mother. I thought he might kill her then come for me. For most of my life I felt like a coward because I didn’t venture out from under the bed to save my mom from her beating.
As an adult I tried to compensate in all different fashion. Yes I’ve inhaled, I jumped out of planes, rode a bull, raced cars and volunteered to go into a war zone all to “prove my manhood”. Of course that was all futile. Manhood doesn’t come from any of those things.
I say this in the knowledge that compared to many I had it incredibly easy. Nobody was putting out cigarettes on my arms or beating me mercilessly.
I know the demons I wrestled with for most of my life. I can only imagine the demons others who had it far worse than me have struggled with.
It’s the old saying…”Walk a mile in my shoes”. None of us know the real torment that drives Tanard Jackson. I hope he gets help and I hope he is able to find peace of mind.
Trust me! As someone who understands what the demons can be like the money is irrelevant. Getting his health and his mind and soul back are what we should all hope for him.
July 10th, 2014 at 11:33 am
Given that we don’t know what the violation was for, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to judge the man. What if it was for a performance enhancing drug? So, in that case he was busted for something involved in preparing for football, which is rampant in the league. If that’s the violation, it casts a different light on the violation. All I’m saying is that the talk about addiction is not really appropriate without more details.
July 10th, 2014 at 12:04 pm
If you’re trying to defend this guy, just remember:
FOUR different times, even if it was 4 different substances (it wasn’t) there’s absolutely no excuse to be such an idiot and throw away one of the best opportunities on the planet to set yourself up for life.
Absolutely no excuses.
July 10th, 2014 at 12:10 pm
I’m not making excuses for him. He doesn’t need excuses. I’m just saying it doesn’t make sense to pass judgement without more details. I also think that intolerance towards people who struggle with addiction is not helpful. Doesn’t mean I want guys with addiction problems on my team – there are consequences to these mistakes, as there should be. But bashing and/or judging him as a human being isn’t good for anybody.
July 10th, 2014 at 12:17 pm
Ahhh, I think it’d be a stretch for anyone here to know him as anything other than a football player.
You’re right though, we just don’t know the man or what he’s dealing with. But as a football player, yikes.
July 10th, 2014 at 12:27 pm
I get the story Joe, but who is this Jackson guy? bleh!
July 10th, 2014 at 1:10 pm
I have no sympathy for the guy, he knew the rules and broke them. At the same time can we stop ruining people lives for smoking weed.
I mean its legal in multiple states. The rest of the world doesnt consider it a illicit drug. Its just weed. Make them pay a fine or something.
How many drunken driving incidents happen every year and kill people.
July 10th, 2014 at 1:21 pm
@StPeteBucsFan, Well said Sir, HATS OFF !!!!!!!
July 10th, 2014 at 2:19 pm
Let the man smoke his weed, my goodness! We want to run this guy through the ringer cause he failed drug tests because of marijuana, meanwhile we have rapist and wife/gf beating POS’s still playing in the league. When will the NFL learn that over half of the league smokes weed…Why do you think Baseball doesnt test for it, cause it is stupid, its better for these players to smoke weed then it is for them to be out drinking alcohol.
July 10th, 2014 at 3:10 pm
@StPeteBucsFan
#Respect
July 10th, 2014 at 3:27 pm
You cannot walk in someone else’s shoes. We don’t know what Tanard has been through. We only see the fall from grace and shake our heads. Addiction has nothing to do with character good or bad. The man is an addict pure and simple. As a fellow human being he deserves our compassion and prayers.
July 10th, 2014 at 4:01 pm
Try waking up every monday morning feeling like you were in a car wreck and not wanting to smoke a bowl of that good ole green instead of going for the opioid pain killers NFL doctors dish out like candy.
July 10th, 2014 at 4:52 pm
Gee……I wonder why Willie Nelson or Paul McCartney haven’t been to rehab? Oh yes now I remember…….because people don’t go to rehab for WEED!
July 10th, 2014 at 10:04 pm
My take on this is that he has probably been given a pass through life and school starting in elementry through HS and college because of his athletic ability. So once he hits the NFL he figures he will be given a pass again. Joe, he never developed his brain like you did to study your way through college. Nobody ever made him do it. He’s got a 9th grade mentality and I’m sure he sees plenty of his NFL buds smoking dope each week and nothing happens to them. Thats because the NFL and players union look the other way by giving players advance notice that they will be tested, at least until you get caught once. But being the dumb human being he is, he thinks they will keep giving him warnings but let him back on the club. They always have at every level, why would his thinking change?
August 9th, 2014 at 6:18 pm
Actually, having known Tanard for four years during undergrad, he is a very intelligent young man. He graduated from a top prep school in the DMV area and did very well at Syracuse (and yes, he did his own work). Before you ask how I know, I was on many group projects with him and we did work together. He has some personal issues, which we all do. He was always a respectful young man, someone I was happy to see reach his goal. It is unfortunate to witness his public downfall. Please refrain from throwing stones, unless you are living a life of perfection.