Jordan Brand has never been one to care about arbitrary dress codes. Last Sunday, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback and Jumpman athlete Jalen Hurts took the field wearing mismatched Air Jordan 11 cleats that apparently broke the NFL’s rule, which states; “A player may wear shoes that are black, white, or any Constitutional team color, or any combination of black, white, and a Constitutional team color.”
The NFL just announced a fine of $5,628 for violation, to which Jordan Brand quickly responded with an eight-word media blast: We’re paying the fine. You can’t ban greatness.
Hurts signed with Jordan Brand in 2023 and regularly breaks out PEs on gameday, including Jordan 1, 5, and 11 cleats in Eagles colors. However, Sunday’s game against the Steelers marked the first time he violated the league’s dress code. Of course, one can’t help but reminisce about when Nike paid Michael Jordan’s fines for wearing the “banned” Jordan 1s back in ’85, thus amplifying their cool factor while getting far more than their money’s worth in earned media. Forty years later, Jordan Brand just did the exact same thing on the gridiron.
