Pittsburgh Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey opted to wear the name of a fallen police officer on the back of his helmet during a game.
“I want to personally clarify what transpired this past Monday night in regard to having Antwon Rose’s name on the back of my helmet,” Pouncey said in an Instagram statement. “I was given limited information on the situation regarding Antwon, and I was unaware of the whole story surrounding his death and what transpired during the trial following the tragedy. I should have done more research to fully understand what occurred in its entirety.”
“My work with the police, both in Pittsburgh and back home in Florida, is well documented. I don’t always feel the need to highlight what I do with police departments, but I also want to make sure they understand I inadvertently supported a cause of which I did not fully comprehend the entire background of the case. I take responsibility for not doing more investigating into something that is sensitive to the community and his family, but it is a less learned as it relates to political issues that occur every day in our society,” he continued.
This weekend, Pouncey wrote Eric Kelly’s on the back of his helmet. Kelly was one of three Pittsburgh police officers killed responding to a 2009 domestic dispute.
Pouncey further said that he would make his own decisions on what messages are placed on the back of his helmet for future games.
“Moving forward, I will make my own decision about what to wear on the back of my helmet. Make no mistake, I am against racism and I believe the best thing I can do is to continue helping repair relationships between the police and their communities. Systemic racism issues have occurred in our country for too long, and that needs to stop,” he said.
“My focus will continue to be on helping the police in our communities, and I will support making any necessary changes to help those efforts.”
Pouncey’s decision came a week after the Steelers honored teenager Antwon Rose Jr. on their helmets. Rose Jr. was fatally shot by police during a traffic stop in connection to a drive-by shooting investigation. The other passenger in the vehicle later pleaded guilty to being involved in the shooting.
Steelers lineman Alejandro Villanueva was the only player not to honor Rose Jr. last week, instead opting to honor fallen U.S. Army veteran Alwyn Cashe.
