CHICAGO, Ill. — Bears quarterback Caleb Williams heads into Monday night at Seattle still wearing the cleats that have cost him more than $35,000 in league fines, and he has shown no sign of covering up the brand.
The NFL first docked Williams $11,941, then $23,882 for a second offense tied to the shoes he wore in Week 7, bringing the total to $35,823 in two weeks. The violation is not the shoe itself. League rules let players wear any footwear as long as logos from companies outside the official supplier group of Adidas, Nike and Under Armour are covered, a practice known as spatting.
Williams wears cleats from Caddix, a four-person company that has been selling shoes for under two years. Its chief executive, Jack Rasmussen, has said Williams bought the cleats on his own, is not paid by the company, and that Caddix will pay the fines. Rasmussen said the brand counts somewhere above 80 NFL players among its wearers, none of them paid, and that the cleats have passed league health and safety testing.
Williams told reporters on Oct. 28 that his health is his focus and that he will keep using the shoes if they give him even a small edge. The company says its studs are designed to release under heavy load to cut down on non-contact knee and ankle injuries.
Rasmussen has also said Williams appealed at least one fine and has a hearing on Nov. 10. Players share in revenue from the league supplier deals under the agreement with the players union, which is part of why unapproved logos draw penalties.
Chicago, 5-2, plays the Seahawks on Monday Night Football.
Section: More Irmo SC sports news
Irmo sports business profiles
Filed under: Irmo SC Sports News
