The NFL continues to be concerned only with how it thinks it looks (at the cost of how it actually looks), especially when it comes to social causes. We’re reaching the tail end of October, which has been Breast Cancer Awareness Month in the NFL. Raising breast-cancer awareness is a good thing, and a cause especially close to DeAngelo Williams’ heart. But every time Williams tries to raise awareness on the football field beyond simply wearing NFL-approved pink apparel, the NFL punishes him.
"We will find a cure" and the breast cancer ribbon were printed on DeAngelo Williams' eyeblack this month. The NFL just fined him $5757
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) October 28, 2015
And that’s during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Why can’t the NFL see the logic in front of their faces? Are fines doled out by some sort of punishment robot that is fed news of players breaking uniform code and sends the notices? How can the NFL be so concerned with its image and yet repeatedly tarnish it with slavish devotion to the damn dress code? They did the same thing to Williams’ Steelers teammate William Gay:
William Gay's mother killed in act of domestic violence. Last two Octobers, worn purple cleats to bring attention to DV. Today, fined $5787.
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) October 28, 2015
Those purple cleats William Gay has been wearing, btw? They're official Vikings cleats. But b/c he plays for the Steelers, it's a violation
— Aditi Kinkhabwala (@AKinkhabwala) October 28, 2015
Players like Gay and Williams are exactly who the NFL should be lauding and foregrounding — and they know it:
https://twitter.com/xmasape/status/659395556108709888
We didn’t see Adam Silver fine LeBron James for wearing I Can’t Breathe T-shirts, and that’s even a divisive issue. No one is pro-breast cancer or pro-domestic violence. But the NFL, even as it tells you it’s doing good, can’t tolerate the good being done on its field.
