'All the guys wanted me to do it': NFL players respond to Trump-dance publicity as league passes issue down to networks



NFL players will not be disciplined for doing Donald Trump-inspired celebrations, with multiple players saying they are simply trying to have fun.

After San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa was fined over $11,000 for wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat for mere seconds during a postgame interview, he later did the Trump dance after a sack against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Many assumed this would lead to the league clamping down on the politically themed celebrations and making another example out of Bosa. However, the league later revealed that its guidance on the topic was actually no guidance at all.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said there is "no issue" with the dance by Bosa or any of the players in the last two weeks, Blaze News reported.

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers was one of the first players to offer up an explanation for his dance moves after the fact. The 21-year-old told USA Today that he thought the dance would be a cool addition to his touchdown repertoire.

"I’ve seen everyone do it," Bowers explained. "I watched the UFC fight [Saturday] night, and Jon Jones did it."

"I like watching UFC, so I saw it and thought it was cool," he added.

Bosa, on the other hand, said that his teammates were the ones who pushed him into performing the on-field shimmy.

"All the guys wanted me to do it. I wasn't even going to do it, but the boys reminded me. And it was fun."

'It's up to the networks to cover them as they see fit.'

At the same time, Front Office Sports asked the NFL spokesman if the league had given any directives to television networks surrounding whether or not they should show the celebrations. The league seemingly pulled a Trumpian move of its own, pushing the decision to states (networks).

"It's up to the networks to cover them as they see fit," the league spokesman said of the dances.

Certain networks have been caught ignoring or outright clipping certain viewpoints. NBC in particular has has edited out remarks relating to Christianity and also entirely avoided the fact that Elon Musk was at an NFL game the network was airing. While this is certainly the network's own prerogative and freedom of choice, these decisions certainly have a much bigger downside when they are noticed.

Furthermore, the NFL's comments came after reporter Safid Deen said just days earlier that the Las Vegas Raiders' public relations team ended their question period after he asked Bowers about his Trump dance.

"Raiders PR ended his postgame availability after my question," Deen wrote on X.

Despite this, the team still posted a stand-alone video of Bowers doing the dance on social media.

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Calling all Patriots!

Las Vegas Raiders mandate vaccines for home games, offer to jab fans in the parking lot before games — then they can enter with masks



The Las Vegas Raiders announced this week that fans will be required to provide proof of vaccination on their cellphones in order to attend home games, becoming the first team in the National Football League to implement such a mandate.

Furthermore, in one of the stranger addendums to a vaccine mandate policy yet, the organization offered to give unvaccinated fans a jab in the parking lot on their way in. Those fans then would be permitted entry but would need to wear a mask during the event.

In a news release issued Monday, the team said that fans will be required to display their vaccination using "CLEAR's free mobile app and Health Pass feature." The policy will go into effect ahead of the team's regular-season opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 13.

Further details regarding the mobile app program and the on-site vaccination initiative were scheduled to be outlined during a news conference Tuesday afternoon at Allegiant Stadium.

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The new rule was implemented in response to a state directive regarding large events issued by Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak. On Monday, Sisolak announced a health advisory change for large event organizers that allows them to host a mask-free event so long as everyone in attendance is vaccinated against the coronavirus.

"Health and safety has always been our number one priority," Raiders owner Mark Davis said in a statement. "After consultation with Governor Sisolak and other community leaders, this policy ensures that we will be able to operate at full capacity without masks for fully vaccinated fans for the entire season."

In May, the Raiders announced a policy requiring all full-time staff in both the football and business operations to be fully vaccinated against the virus. Shortly after, Allegiant Stadium's management company, ASM, implemented a vaccine mandate for full-time staff, as well.

It remains to be seen if more NFL teams will follow in the Raiders' footsteps as the season approaches. Last year during the pandemic, fans were largely barred from attending games until later in the season when certain teams opened up stadiums with extremely limited capacity.

Vaccines have been a controversial subject since the start of training camp when the league announced stringent health protocols intended to make life more miserable for unvaccinated players as part of an effort to encourage vaccinations.

In response, several players — including Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and Buffalo Bills slot receiver Cole Beasley — expressed outrage at the rules.