It’s a sad state of affairs when even a touchdown celebration by Brock Bowers can’t unite Las Vegas Raiders fans, but it speaks volumes on current matters. Cue the “liberal” tears.
Never mind that Bowers is having a historically successful campaign for a rookie tight end; no, that’s not what’s making headlines. We really should be celebrating the feats that he’s accomplishing in his young career—he added to that on Sunday, hauling in 13 catches and his third touchdown of the year.
No, instead the world is reacting to his endzone celebration, which seems to be wildly popular among many professional athletes. Of course, we are referring to the “Trump Dance,” which UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones also used in celebration of his latest victory. As far as Bowers goes, he jumped on the latest trend when he scored against the Miami Dolphins in Week 11—another Raiders loss, by the way.
Opposite sides are reacting to Brock Bowers’ celebration
Like any politicized American topic, Bowers’ actions have elicited reactions from a wide range of perspectives. To some, it’s all in fun—a young man taking in the moment after a touchdown. Others, however, use it as yet another excuse to go after president-elect Donald Trump. Then, you have some who couldn’t care less, because, well, the Raiders still stink.
We can truly sum up the reactions on Sunday in terms of polar opposites. Just take a look at some of the reactions from Twitter/X.
Brock Bowers notches a TD for the Raiders, celebrates with Trump dance. It’s a new world, y’all. Athletes are done with the woke bullshit era. pic.twitter.com/01LF2O2K4Q
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) November 17, 2024
Hit the Trump dance? Sounds about white. https://t.co/grMiaMSvgl
— Barrios (@jdb_chillin) November 17, 2024
Za’Darius Smith, Brock Bowers and Calvin Ridley all perform the Trump YMCA dance on NFL Sunday.
There is still a lot of football left. pic.twitter.com/yVpdIgDTtA
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) November 17, 2024
Bowers TD, but he did the MAGAT dance pic.twitter.com/3uREJS9s10
— Shane (@ShanyeWest15) November 17, 2024
Did the Raiders cut off No. 89?
Interestingly enough, Bowers was asked about his celebration following the game. Courtesy of USA Today, Bowers stated that he too witnessed Jones’ celebration and decided to do his own take on it.
“I’ve seen everyone do it. I watched the UFC fight last night and Jon Jones did it. I like watching UFC, so I saw it and thought it was cool.”
Another aspect of this situation is that it seems the Raiders’ PR department terminated Bowers’ availability immediately following his response. Pro Football Talk also covered this story, a development that naturally raises questions. Is there some sort of agenda with regard to what took place on Sunday, or is it simply a coincidence? Maybe Bowers’ time to respond to reporters was just over, and that’s all there is to it.
*Top Photo: NFL on CBS
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