After Sunday’s win over the Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa interrupted a postgame interview with several teammates with NBC’s Melissa Stark and put his hands in front of his white baseball cap. He pointed his index finger. The words “Make America Great Again” were sewn in gold capital letters.
Presumably, the purpose was to show support for former President Donald Trump, who used the slogan as a campaign rallying cry. He was elected in 2016, lost re-election in 2020, and has adopted this message again this year as he seeks a second term.
Nick Bosa wears a MAGA hat and refuses to do SNF postgame interview pic.twitter.com/Rj0T0XpcWB
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) October 28, 2024
Botha has the right to support whoever he chooses. As the saying goes, this is a free country. But this display, and the intentionality behind it, was interesting, given that the NFL has gone to great lengths over the past eight years to prevent players from making political expression at games. .
The league changed its pregame policy in 2018, two years after Colin Kaepernick first protested police brutality against Black and brown people by taking a silent knee during the national anthem. With a vote of 30 in favor and two abstentions, the owners asked the players to stand during the “Star-Spangled Banner” or remain in the locker room until the end.
The vote, and the news that players could face fines and suspensions if they violate it, prompted immediate complaints from the NFL Players Association, and ultimately led to the league and association blocking the new rules from taking effect. We agreed to cancel.
Still, this vote from owners was surprising. Not only because the protests had essentially died down and only a few players were still kneeling, but also because several owners told me on the eve of the vote that there was no need to reignite the controversy.
When this change was approved, I asked Packers CEO Mark Murphy about it.
“We can’t let Trump weaponize our league,” he told me.
President Trump has been particularly critical of the protesters, calling them “sons of bitches” and going so far as to demand that their contracts be terminated. Never mind that Kaepernick chose the ultimate form of protest based on former Green Beret Nate Boyer’s advice that kneeling during the national anthem would show more respect than sitting. Please.
Many people couldn’t concentrate on their messages because of Messenger. I hope Bosa doesn’t make the same mistake. His actions are his actions. His personal beliefs are his personal beliefs. But if the NFL’s goal is to keep political expression off the field, Bosa will need to face some kind of discipline.
NFL uniform rules state that players can be fined more than $11,000 if they wear unauthorized logos or branding, which certainly falls under the campaign slogan.
Unless action is taken, it would signal a double standard, and the league would rather white players use the national spotlight to run for president than black players to demonstrate against systemic racism. The question arises as to whether they prefer to support it.
The league did not respond to emails and text messages seeking comment.
As for Bosa, I would respect him more if he stood ten bars lower on his beliefs. During his post-game press conference, he literally swapped hats and refused to talk about his demo.
“I’m not going to talk about it too much, but I think this is an important time,” he said.
This is not the first time Mr Botha has caused controversy for his personal beliefs. Before being drafted, he regularly praised Trump and called him and Ronald Reagan the GOATs (Greatest Men of All Time). In 2016, he called Kaepernick a “clown.” He cleaned his social media accounts ahead of the 2019 draft because they contained posts that could be construed as insensitive or offensive. San Francisco general manager John Lynch specifically asked about some posts, including one he liked before the draft that included homophobic and racist hashtags.
He appeared to be remorseful in his post-draft press conference, saying, “I’m sorry if I hurt anyone. I never meant for that to happen.” Being here (in San Francisco) has meant nothing to me as a human being.” I think it’s even better because I don’t think there is any other place or city that helps me grow as much as I do here.I grow as a person by being surrounded by all kinds of people. I’m going to grow and learn a lot of new things.”
That sounded good, but now it looks like he was acting for the cameras.
That being said, my problem isn’t, for lack of a better word, with bossa. He is exactly what we thought he was. He’s not the only player to support Trump. Tom Brady, the NFL’s golden boy for most of his career, gave an interview ahead of the 2016 election with a Trump hat clearly visible in his locker. Trump and Brady both mentioned their friendship, with Brady saying a Trump victory would mean “a putting green on the White House lawn.”
The concern is that the NFL is showing a double standard when it comes to political expression by its players. Kaepernick was accused of fighting for social justice and Bosa was like, what? Ignored by the league and celebrated by far-right supporters who demand that athletes, especially black athletes, stick to their sports?
If the NFL chooses to fine Bosa, it will likely announce its decision Saturday as part of its regular cycle of on-field fines.
But double standards are common in the country’s most popular and powerful league. Commissioner Roger Goodell is known for being heavy-handed with players and lenient with owners. Michael Bidwill (Arizona Cardinals), Robert Kraft (New England Patriots), Jimmy Haslam (Cleveland Browns) and Woody Johnson (New York Jets) are all players in leagues that are supposed to lock down owners. I have committed an act that is considered to be a violation of the Personal Conduct Guidelines. And executives are also held to a higher standard. However, no one has been publicly disciplined by the commissioner.
I’m not holding my breath that some action will be taken against Bosa. It’s written on the wall in black and white.
(Nick Bosa photo: Michael Owens/Getty Images)
