Nick Bosa broke the rules after the 49ers’ Week 8 victory over the Dallas Cowboys and, as expected, the NFL fined the edge rusher on Saturday.
The NFL fined Bosa $11,255 for wearing a "Make America Great Again" hat in support of President-elect Donald Trump, a violation of a non-partisan rule that prohibits players from displaying any message relating to a political activity or campaign.
Bosa was fined for a violation of the NFL uniform and equipment rules for wearing a hat that contained a personal message, a source told NBC Sports Bay Area.
Bosa, 27, grew up in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and played three seasons at Ohio State before the 49ers selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
He long has identified himself as a supporter of President-elect Trump.
When given a platform after the game against the Cowboys to expound on his political views during a press conference, Bosa said, “I'm not going to talk too much about it, but I think it's an important time.”
But Bosa expressed no regret for his choice of hat after President-elect Trump defeated Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris in the general election earlier this week.
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“Yeah,” Bosa said in the 49ers' locker room on Wednesday. “It was well worth it.”
Bosa inserted himself into the controversy on Sunday night when he entered an area on the field in which three teammates were being interviewed by NBC’s Melissa Stark on live television. Bosa walked between Stark and 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy to briefly display and point to a hat that read, “Make America Great Again.”
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“I don’t think my position on speaking about it is going to change,” Bosa said Wednesday. “Clearly, the nation spoke, and we got what we got.”
The period of time in which a player is prohibited from displaying a personal message is described in the NFL rulebook as throughout a game day that a player is visible to the stadium and television audience, including postgame interviews in the locker room or on the field.
Rule 5, Section 4, Article 8 states a player is prohibited from wearing or displaying a personal message that relates “to political activities or causes, other non-football events, causes or campaigns, or charitable causes or campaigns.”
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