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Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end David Irving recently made headlines by walking away from football while protesting the NFL's anti-marijuana stance, and Cowboys coach Jason Garrett allegedly encouraged that decision.

"He told me I should just quit, smoke all the weed I want, the team didn't need me," Irving told USA Today Sports' Jori Epstein on Thursday. "I'm a distraction to the team. He views marijuana as a drug, whereas I view it as a medicine. It's not a good situation."

Irving was suspended indefinitely March 1 for a violation of the substance-abuse policy. This comes after he was previously banned for four games in both 2017 (performance-enhancing drugs) and 2018 (substance abuse).

It appears Garrett had grown tired of dealing with the lineman's off-field issues.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, on the other hand, was supportive of his former player.

"Basically, Jerry, he is supportive of me," Irving added, per Epstein. "He understands my situation and what I was dealing with. Our hands were pretty much tied. His hands were tied."

Irving told Epstein that he had been diagnosed with manic depression, borderline schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress disorder and bipolar disorder. He attributes those mental illnesses to concussions suffered in the NFL.

On March 7, Irving went on Instagram live and announced his decision to retire. While appearing to smoke a blunt, he noted that marijuana is not as dangerous as other pain medication given to NFL players (warning: contains profanity):

"People need to understand I'm not doing this—I didn't quit football to smoke weed," Irving told Epstein. "That would be idiotic. I understand that. It's about wellness, about rights. People need to understand that."

Irving would later tell TMZ Sports that he had "no regrets" about walking away from the game at 25 years old:

He also told TMZ Sports on Wednesday that he plans to create his own marijuana strain. Per Epstein, Irving has partnered with Ghost Beverage and will help launch a pair of products, cannabidiol pre-rolls and cannabidiol vape pens.

Irving was scheduled to be a free agent this offseason after playing out his rookie contract. Undrafted out of Iowa State in 2015, he played four seasons in the NFL, piling up 12.5 sacks.