These billboards will go up in the New York metro area in time for Sunday. | Courtesy SAM Anti-pot billboards coming to Bowl

Days after a marijuana advocacy group announced its pro-pot billboards around the Super Bowl, an anti-marijuana group is unveiling its own.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana, a group chaired by former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.), gave a preview Wednesday of the group’s digital and vinyl billboards that will go up in the New York-New Jersey area in time for Sunday’s Super Bowl at MetLife Stadium.


The advertisements feature a football player in motion and marijuana leaf, labeling the former “motivation, perseverance, and determination” and the latter “none of the above.”

“Marijuana kills your drive. Don’t lose in the game of life,” the tagline reads.

The announcement comes on the heels of a similar campaign from the Marijuana Policy Project, which this week announced five football-themed billboards calling for a relaxation of NFL rules banning player use of weed.

In recent remarks, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell spoke about possibly allowing players to use medicinal marijuana if it’s shown to help with head injuries.

Smart Approaches to Marijuana said the billboards will call attention to the dangers of marijuana.

“Marijuana use saps motivation, perseverance, and determination — the opposite of what it takes to win the Super Bowl,” Kennedy said in a statement. “It is not a safe drug, especially for kids, and we need to reiterate the message to coaches, parents, players, and teens alike that it has no place in football.”

The ads went up Wednesday night.

On Thursday, MPP announced it would put up more billboards responding to the ones from SAM, including one that parodies the design of SAM’s ad to argue marijuana is safer than alcohol and another featuring a quote from Kennedy that President Barack Obama was right to say alcohol is more dangerous than marijuana, though Kennedy has been an outspoken critic of Obama’s recent remarks.

Pot has been in particular focus as many have noted the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos both represent states that recently have changed their laws to allow recreational use of marijuana.

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