Does the NFL allow players to consume Zyn pouches in the middle of the game? The game against the Ravens was a heartbreak for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. So, their QB Baker Mayfield might have had to resort to something to relax him. But the problem is, he was caught on the television doing so.

The Sports on Tap’s account on X posted a picture. In the pic, Mayfield was caught getting a Zyn pouch out while sitting on the sidelines. They captioned the photo: “Just a casual Zyn for Baker Mayfield in the middle of the game.”

Zyn pouches, or Snus, contain nicotine and are rampant in terms of usage in the NFL. According to an article in the New York Times, a study found that 18 percent of the surveyed male athletes used Snus. While 22 percent of female athletes surveyed for the study used the nicotine product.

More than half of the Snus users have reported nicotine dependence of some kind. From 2019-2022, the sales of oral nicotine products have increased sales by six-fold and a lot of your favorite athletes surprisingly consume these products.

Back in 2015, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN did an article where he reported that about 80% of the Cleveland Browns locker room had a habit of chewing tobacco or Snus (Zyn, On! and many others).

Per Spencer Lanning, the retired NFL punter who played for the Cleveland Browns from 2013-2014, “Some started in college, others didn’t do it until they got to the pro level, but it’s widespread.” He also reported that “I’ve never been on a team that didn’t have at least half or 75 percent that did it.”

Fowler also quoted Phillip Daniels, a retired NFL DE, saying, “I don’t think the NFL cares much because it’s all done behind the scenes.” So, what’s the reason behind it? Apparently, “It’s not a PR issue,” so the NFL doesn’t pay much heed to it.

But despite the controversies around the usage of nicotine pouches, Josh Allen thinks that it’s helpful while many others believe that it’s a performance enhancer in the sense that it heightens the stimuli.

Does Josh Allen too consume Zyns, alike Mayfield?

Back in August, the Buffalo Bills quarterback appeared in a podcast with Chris Long. They talked about his all-time favorite show. The quarterback revealed that it happened in one of the Chiefs games. He segued into what he’s been doing in the off-season to get his body right. Apart from eating well and exercising, there was a secret trick to Josh Allen’s successful off-season.

“This offseason was…I approached it a bit differently. OTAs had a chef all good things and she was great. Her name is Christine. So, I was eating better, one. I took care of myself more than I ever had in our little month-and-a-half break. And there’s, I don’t know if I should say this but there’s a secret trick that I don’t know if it’s true or not; I’m just throwing in a few Zyn’s,” Allen admitted.

Apparently, Dalton Kincaid introduced him to Zyn, and he’s been consuming the orange citrus flavor for a while now. One of the few key changes of Allen getting into shape has been the use of smokeless tobacco products. Though he’s not “very big on it.” It came out when Chris Long complimented him by saying that he looked slimmer.

Is it okay for players like Baker Mayfield to pop Zyn products? What’s your take on it? Let us know in the comments.