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Did you know that if an NFL player wants to keep their equipment, like their shoulder pads, helmets and jerseys, after the season, they have to pay for it?
Because they do.
Does that surprise you?
Because it certainly did a lot of NFL fans.
Tianna Robillard, the girlfriend of Arizona Cardinals offensive guard Cody Ford, revealed on TikTok recently just how much he has to pay to keep some of his NFL gear – and it’s not cheap.
Her TikTok video, which has now been viewed over 4.5 million times, shows Ford carrying a few jerseys and a helmet with the caption, “I really just found out these boys buy their own gear.”
“You’re all done,” Tianna says to Ford in the video. “You have to bring your helmet home?”
“I bought it,” he tells her.
“You bought it?” she says back with surprise.
“Yeah,” he replies with a look like, “of course we do” on his face.
“And you bought those?” she then says, pointing at his jerseys.
The camera then jumps to inside the house where we see Ford sorting through his purchases.
“$1,350 for all of that,” Tianna says to the camera. “That’s a lot of money.”
Ford hears that and frowns like, “it’s not really.”
Then he puts the helmet on her, then they put it on the dog, then they put a jersey on one of the dogs, and fun was had by all.
@tiannarobillard Ya learn new tings errydayyy. Season being over feels like schools out #azcardinals #nfl #nflcouple ♬ original sound – Tianna Robillard
Meanwhile, many NFL fans on social media were as surprised as Tianna was that an NFL player like Cody Ford has to pay for that gear.
I had no idea NFL players bought their own gear. Do you suppose the elite QB’s buy their stuff as well? 🤷♂️
— Gregory (@RoKnowz) January 16, 2023
“I refuse to believe Tom Brady is cutting a check for his helmet lol,” another fan commented on TikTok.
I've long heard Cincinnati specifically was cheapo enough to force their players to buy their gear. Didn't know it was a league-wide thing.
— Mike C. (@skidawgkc22) January 16, 2023
“I even give my employees their work shirts for free,” someone else wrote on TikTok.
I never knew this. I don't really pity them either though.
— Adam David (@AdamDavid1980) January 16, 2023
Granted, we’re talking about NFL players who make an average of around $2.7 million, so that’s not a lot of money to them.
On the other hand, the average career length of an NFL player is about 3.3 years and NFL teams are worth an average of $4.47 billion, so why do they care?