NFL Dress Code Rules

“Pro football is like nuclear warfare. There are no winners, only survivors.” -Frank Gifford. Football is a full contact sport, so it is not supposed to be safe, and no one ever expected it to be safe. Recently the effects of countless head injuries endured by players many years ago had just started to surface. The NFL has started to attempt to make professional football as safe as they possibly can without ruining the game. The majority of the rules the NFL has in place are necessary when it comes to how the game is played and maintaining the safest environment on the football field for the players, however some of the other rules being added to the rulebook are arguably unnecessary and truthfully ridiculous. Players are more often than not
fined for not dressing practically exactly how the NFL requires them to. The worst part is these fines aren’t just fifty dollar fines, they are in the thousands, just for not pulling up their socks far enough before the opening kickoff.

The league’s dress code rules are absurd and are often taken too seriously, they intend to make the league look as professional as possible, and these strict dress codes strip players of their individuality. Players have almost no breathing room when it comes to what they wear and how they wear it. The NFL rules makers are extremist when it comes to the strict policies of gameday dress code. They enforce their rules as if the players that violate these specific rules have just committed a felony. Players are even required to leave in a suit and tie after every game. One player who fell victim to these strict policies not having any bendability would be William Gay. His mother’s death was a result of an incident involving domestic violence.Gay asked the league for permission multiple times to be able to wear purple cleats to raise awareness for domestic violence and its victims. He wore the cleats regardless of what they said, and was fined for doing so (Hartman). Gay wasn’t doing anything that would make a fine necessary; he was showing his support for a cause he is very close to. This goes to show that the players have no say in what they are allowed to wear on their person, even if all they are trying to do is show their support for an organization with a good cause. The NFL has these rules in place to attempt to make the league look as professional as they possibly can while still pleasing their fans and maintaining a good public image.
What they have yet to realize is that trying to make themselves look more professional by making the players dress a certain way is hurting their public image tremendously. An example of an action the NFL has taken that would ruin their public image would be LaDainian Tomlinson. Tomlinson asked the NFL to allow him to wear a tinted visor in games due to health issues involving his eyes. They didn’t let him at first which could easily make any respect that the fans have for the league vanish. The NFL allowed him to wear a tinted visor a couple days after they originally said no (Baines). Regardless of whether or not Tomlinson had a medical condition that would require him to have a darker visor or not; he should be able to wear it if he wants to even if he had no health problems requiring the visor. The tinted visor serve the same purpose as sunglasses, they are accessories and help to protect against the sun. Players should not be banned from wearing something that will cause no negative effects to the flow of the game. In conclusion, the NFL tries too hard when making and enforcing their dress code rules. They punish players for dressing ways that would not even be considered indecent or anything in that nature. The NFL is slowly ruining their own reputation even though they are trying to build it up.
The dress code rules restrict the variety of what players can wear as much as they possibly can, which is really unnecessary and ruins the bond between the league and its passionate players.