Raiders' DeSean Jackson says NFL would not allow him to wear John Madden tribute cleats vs. Colts
'I had these made for the legendary John Madden,' Jackson said
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1 min read
Raiders wide receiver DeSean Jackson wanted to honor the late John Madden with special cleats on Sunday, but Jackson said the league made him take them off before Las Vegas' game against the Colts began. Many in football have paid their respects to Madden in numerous ways since the NFL icon died last week, and Jackson decided he would use his shoes to do so.
Jackson wanted to wear the cleats for the entire game against the Indianapolis Colts, but NFL rules did not allow it.
#Raiders honor the memory of #JohnMadden. DeSean Jackson's cleats and every player has a JM sticker and a black stripe added to their helmet as well. pic.twitter.com/7Nn6pMLbN6
— Heidi Fang (@HeidiFang) January 2, 2022
Jackson explained his frustration in his Instagram story:
"@NFL hated on me and said if I didn't take cleats off they was gonna remove me from the game!! I had these made for the legendary John Madden."
The Las Vegas Raiders DeSean Jackson was told he could not wear the cleats to honor legendary coach John Madden. #RaiderNation
— NFL Rumors (@nflrums) January 3, 2022
Big loss for the #NFL on that one. pic.twitter.com/q6xsIDT6PV
NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy defended the league's actions, saying in a statement, "This is standard procedure. Players can wear specially designed cleats during pregame but wear their regular cleats during the game."
He continued saying, "There were tributes to the great John Madden throughout all broadcasts and a moment of silence before every game in stadium. All Raiders players also wear special decals on their helmets as another way to salute Coach."
Madden was head coach of the Raiders from 1969-1978 and lead the team to the Super Bowl XI title.
The Raiders ended up defeating the Colts 23-20 to improve to 9-7 on Sunday.
