Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams returned from a three-week absence caused by a hamstring injury for their Week 6 clash against the Atlanta Falcons. Although he led the team to a 31-23 victory, he earned the ire of the NFL after failing to cover up the logo on his Caddix cleats. This prompted the league to issue a fine of $11,941 for displaying the unauthorized logo. 

However, Williams continued to wear the cleats with the logo uncovered in the Week 7 matchup against the New England Patriots. This time the NFL imposed an even heavier penalty on the quarterback with a  $23,882 fine, which Caddix CEO Jack Rasmussen offered to pay. Speaking to sports reporter Samantha Croston on October 30, Rasmussen revealed why he had taken the initiative to pay on behalf of Williams.

“I think the majority of the reason behind it is [that] it’s the right thing to do,” Rasmussen said. “Obviously, Caleb can afford to pay the fines. We all know that. But I think it’s just standing behind what you made and what the product does and how it is and the goal and the vision we have at Caddix. That’s paying a fine. It’s not just handing someone $11,000. It’s actually standing behind what you’ve built. I think it’s more important.”

Rasmussen admitted he knew Williams was more than capable of paying the penalty himself. Having signed a four-year, $39.49 million rookie contract with the Bears, Williams earned an annual salary of about $9.87 million and could afford the hefty league-imposed fine, which comes to a total of $35,823.

But as a brand aimed towards making the sport safer for athletes, Rasmussen felt that Caddix owed it to the Bears QB to back him up.

Caddix cleats were built with special patented “SmartStuds”, which are engineered to flex and release under heavy rotational loads, targeted to reduce high-torque, non-contact lower-extremity issues like ACL tears, knee stress, and ankle sprains. However, since the NFL only has exclusive footwear partnerships with Nike, Under Armor, and Adidas, displaying the Caddix logo went against their marketing policies.

Williams’ rebellion came as a response to the league prioritizing brand deals and visuals over player safety. In fact, the Bears QB does not have a contract or endorsement deal with Caddix at all. Rather, he bought the specialized shoes specifically to prevent chances of further injury after recovering from his hamstring issue.

“As we’ve known for the past couple of years now, I’m huge into my body,” Williams said to ESPN. “I’m huge into trying to stay on the field. I’m huge into trying to be healthy. It’s a rough game and things like that. So the cleats, they’ve been great. They’ve been super comfy, and they’ve worked. They are a science type of cleat. It’s something that focuses on when you plant on the hard plants on turf or grass, they call them SmartStuds, and they move when you move in these hard plants.”

Williams pointed out that “a bunch of other guys wear them in the league” for the same reason as him: they prioritize being healthy on the field. He further added that wearing those cleats reduced the overall percentage of players getting injured, ensuring they had a greater chance of remaining healthy. Most of all, he noted that the shoes worked for him and he didn’t see the point in hiding the brand.

The Caddix CEO wasn’t the only one who offered to pay the fine on behalf of Williams. Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Flacco, who invests in the brand and has worn Caddix cleats for several years, also made a similar offer. Flacco explained that as a longtime user of the brand, he knew firsthand how much of a difference the cleats made on the gridiron.