49ers lineman Nick Bosa fined by NFL for crashing teammates’ interview with MAGA hat
By Ben Morse, CNN
(CNN) — San Francisco 49ers star Nick Bosa has been fined $11,255 by the NFL after he crashed his teammates’ postgame interview on Sunday to show his support for former President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election with a hat emblazoned with Trump’s slogan: Make America Great Again, a league source told CNN.
Following the 49ers’ 30-24 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, 27-year-old Bosa interrupted the postgame interview with Brock Purdy, George Kittle and Isaac Guerendo by jogging between Purdy and NBC’s Melissa Stark before pointing to the message emblazoned on the front of his hat and then running away.
The NFL’s rulebook states that “throughout the period on game-day that a player is visible to the stadium and television audience (including in pregame warm-ups, in the bench area, and during postgame interviews in the locker room or on the field), players are prohibited from wearing, displaying, or otherwise conveying personal messages either in writing or illustration, unless such message has been approved in advance by the League office.”
When speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Bosa said he hadn’t been fined but but added that he knew he could be.
“I haven’t got one yet, but if it comes, it comes, It was well worth it,” Bosa said.
“I don’t think my position on speaking about it is going to change. Clearly, the nation spoke. And we got what we got.”
Bosa’s mom, Cheryl, appeared to support her son’s message, reposting a user’s Instagram Story of the moment with the message, “(Cheryl Bosa) you raised your boy right!! #BOSAFORTRUMP.”
Bosa and Trump have long been connected, even before he was drafted by the 49ers with the second overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft.
During his time at Ohio State, Bosa had previously taken heat for some old political tweets, including tweets supporting Trump and a tweet where he called Colin Kaepernick, a former 49er, a “clown.” Bosa apologized for the remark, according to an NFL.com article from 2019.
“I respect what (Kaepernick’s) done,” Bosa said at a news conference after being drafted in 2019. “If it empowers anybody, then he’s doing a good thing. I apologize for that.”
Kaepernick started the movement of NFL players kneeling for the “Star-Spangled Banner” to protest police brutality and racism. Trump railed against Kaepernick and other protesting players and called on the NFL to take punitive measures against them. Kaepernick later filed suit against the NFL, accusing teams of colluding to keep him from playing, and settled earlier this year, according to his attorney.
Bosa has since deleted the tweets, which ESPN said included the criticism of Kaepernick, as well as Beyoncé and the movie “Black Panther.” When asked in an ESPN interview why he deleted the posts, Bosa said, “I had to.”
“There is a chance I might end up in San Francisco,” Bosa said.
Upon Bosa being drafted into the NFL, Trump offered his support for the defensive end.
“Congratulations to Nick Bosa on being picked number two in the NFL Draft. You will be a great player for years to come, maybe one of the best. Big Talent! San Francisco will embrace you but most importantly, always stay true to yourself. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump posted at the time.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
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