NFL Says It Has ‘No Issue’ With Players Doing Trump Dance Celebrations

Maybe this is from the better- to-ask-forgiveness-than-permission department, but the players who have been doing the Trump Dance as part of their big-play celebrations are in the clear with the NFL.

The league, through a spokesperson, has confirmed that it has “no issue” with players who do the dance that mimics the moves of President-elect Donald Trump.

Nov 10, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (97) celebrates after he sacks Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) (not pictured) during the second half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

NFL Allows Trump Dance

“There’s no issue with celebratory dances such as what took place Sunday or the previous week with the 49ers on November 10,” NFL Chief Spokesperson Brian McCarthy said in an e-mail. 

So San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa, who brought the dance to the NFL on Nov. 10? In the clear.

(Bosa was previously fined $11,255 for breaking the NFL rules on unauthorized personnel messaging when he wore a Make America Great Again cap and photobombed a live NBC interview after a game.)

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers, who celebrated a touchdown on Sunday by doing the dance? Also clear.

Tennessee Titans receivers Calvin Ridley and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, who similarly celebrated a touchdown by doing the Tump Dance together, are also good. Unfortunately for the Titans, the score was nullified by a penalty.

Lions Joined In The Celebration

And Lions defenders Za’Darius Smith, Malcolm Rodriguez, and Jack Campbell who celebrated a sack against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday? They’re all good, too.

NFL rules make room for various player celebrations. But the celebrations must not be “excessive” or include violent acts such as a throat slash motion or imitating a shooting by using one’s hands in the form of a gun.

The Trump Dance is kind of innocuous, really, and not considered excessive as it has been portrayed so far.

MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA – NOVEMBER 17: Jakobi Meyers #16 and Brock Bowers #89 of the Las Vegas Raiders celebrate with teammates after Bowers’ receiving touchdown in the third quarter of a game at Hard Rock Stadium on November 17, 2024 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images)

 No Grand Pronouncement From NFL

OutKick founder Clay Travis on Tuesday penned (typed?) a piece making the point that Trump’s re-election and the amplification of the Trump Dance throughout the sports world marks the end of woke sports.

The NFL doesn’t see it in those terms. 

The league sees itself as commenting on a dance used by some players in celebration. Not a cultural phenomenon.

The league wants to be portrayed as sober about its rules and how it applies them evenly across the board – free of any perceived biases, a source told OutKick.

Cool.

The NFL, we should remind everyone, did not fine any players for kneeling back when that demonstration was used by many to make a statement.

Affects On Culture Apparent

None of this changes the fact the Trump Dance has caught on in a manner that seeing cultural meaning in it is understandable.

If you notice, the men doing these celebrations are often joined by teammates. And the teammates together represent varying races or cultures.

So the narrative in some circles that Trump is a racist or fascist, or, as some politicians and media have accused, a Hitler, loses steam when seen in the light of a sports celebration by black, white and brown people.

And this: These guys in the NFL aren’t afraid to do it which reminds everyone it came from Trump. That in of itself is a cultural change from even four years ago.