The NFL allowed players around the NFL to wear special cleats with personal messages on them on Sunday, but players on the Browns and Titans were excluded because they’re on their bye this week. And the NFL told players on those two teams that they won’t be allowed to wear special cleats on a different day.
Two Titans players say they’re going to go ahead and promote their causes with their cleats, no matter what the NFL thinks.
Titans cornerback Jason McCourty and tight end Delanie Walker both told Paul Kuharsky of ESPN that they will wear their cleats for this week’s game. McCourty will wear the same shoe design that his brother, Patriots safety Devin McCourty, wore on Sunday to promote awareness of sickle cell disease.
“I believe you should be [allowed], so I’ll be wearing mine for the game,” McCourty said.
Walker, whose aunt and uncle were killed by a drunk driver in New Orleans hours after they watched him play in Super Bowl XLVII, will wear cleats that promote Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
In the NFL, players who refuse to follow uniform policy always risk fines. In this case, the NFL would be wise to give the players a break. And next year, it would make more sense to do “My Cause, My Cleats” in a week when every team plays.