It wasn’t until his junior year of college in 2015 that Aaron Jones decided to rebel and style his hair into dreadlocks.
He said his parents, Alvin and Vurgess Jones, warned him that black people have long been discriminated against, ostracized or punished at school and in the workplace for wearing their natural hair texture.
But as Jones matured, his parents’ attitude softened, and Jones, the star running back for the Green Bay Packers, has spent eight years now growing his dreadlocks to reach his collarbone, the tips of the ton ones Curls are dyed dark blonde. During the NFL season, he visits a stylist every three months to get a touch-up, he said, and he moisturizes his hair daily at home.
“I just think your hair is part of your strength, and I like the way it looks on me,” Jones said in a phone interview. “You just have to express yourself and do it.”
Dreadlocks are nothing new in football, where 58 percent of the league’s players are black and about 18 percent of players on active NFL rosters — or nearly one in five players at every club — wear their hair in dreadlocks or braids, according to an informal compilation from squad headshots from all 32 teams.
However, NFL athletes’ personal style is constrained by uniform guidelines that are stricter than those in other pro leagues. Players spend most of their games with their faces covered, so they know their hairstyles are an effective way to show off their individuality on game days, red carpet events, and on their social media pages.
lengths vary. Some players keep their spins short or tie them back. Others let their hair flow, oozing out of their helmets.
“You have guys of many nationalities and personalities in the league and everyone wants to express themselves,” said Asante Samuel Jr., a sophomore Chargers cornerback who has been growing his dreadlocks for about four years. “It’s just another way for guys to be themselves.”
Other players with dreadlocks said their choice of style has meaning beyond mere looks. San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner, whose dreadlocks reach near his collar, said he started growing them out in 2018 for aesthetic reasons. But the hairstyle became more meaningful, he said, as he learned about its history and impact on the black community.
“It’s honestly only black culture,” said Warner, who identifies as Afro-Latino and American. “It’s just African American culture and what it means to us as black people because it’s largely unique to us given our hair texture.
“I’m very proud of it,” he added.
Former Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and former Rams running back Steven Jackson were among the first notable players to proudly sport hair long enough to partially cover the back of their jerseys. They did so as the style’s popularity increased in the early years, which confounded the league’s rulemakers.
In 2003, after former Miami Dolphins running back Ricky Williams was pulled down by his dreadlocks in a game, the NFL ruled that hair is part of a player’s uniform and therefore legal to grab in pursuit of a tackle.
“I’ve had my hair pulled a few times,” said Jadeveon Clowney, then linebacker for the Houston Texans, after snapping the locks of former Buffalo Bills running back Chris Ivory in a 2018 game. “But, hey, if they’re part of the uniform and if I could reach for them one more time, I would.”
Defensive players make up about 60 percent of players with dreadlocks or braids. They are rarely attacked unless securing an intercept or fumble.
“I’m not overly concerned about that,” Warner said. “If they’re pulling my hair, it means I probably did something right and I have the ball in my hands.”
Primary ball carriers who sport dreadlocks know the risks. Last season against the 49ers, Jones said cornerback Josh Norman ripped out strands of hair during an attempted tackle. Jones said the tug didn’t hurt, but as he jogged back to the huddle he saw Norman with the twists in his hand raised.
“It was like he was partying,” Jones said, giggling. “That was a first.”
Jones said he got Norman’s hair and put it in his sock for the rest of the ride. On the sidelines, he gave it to the fitting staff for safekeeping so he could have it refitted later.
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill got his dreadlocks after his draft in 2016. His curls don’t rise above his helmet just yet, but he’s not worried about the day they do.
“I rarely get tackled,” said Hill, one of the fastest players in the league. “I can’t really imagine being in that situation.”
Other players are taking action to curb their bans. On game days, many wear a skullcap or headband under their helmets to tie them back, which also helps keep sweat and oil from dripping down their faces.
In the past, Tennessee Titans running back Derrick Henry had weaved his dreadlocks into a tightly knit fishtail braid that extended to just above his shoulder pads. Rams defenseman Jalen Ramsey, whose hair reaches his cheeks, has often worn a balaclava, a mask that envelops a person’s entire head, leaving only an opening for the eyes.
Keeping dreads neatly in the helmet can prevent opportunities for hair-raising tackles and make the player more comfortable. But it can also be challenging to customize these helmets to provide intended head protection.
The NFL has invested over $200 million in helmet and concussion research over the past decade, including a $2 million grant contest to develop a new “highest performing helmet.” Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president of communications, public affairs and policy, said in a statement that 67 percent of all players in the league this season are wearing helmets that precisely fit the specific measurements of their heads.
Riddell, one of the leading helmet manufacturers, started producing models with “Precision-Fit” technology in 2017. To be customized, players wear patterned hoods that are detected when team gear managers scan their heads with a mobile app. These images are sent to Riddell who will provide players with a helmet with custom padding within four weeks of receiving their details.
“What player doesn’t want a helmet that fits them perfectly and has their name sewn into the inner liner?” said Thad Ide, Riddell’s senior vice president of research and product development.
But few “perfect-fit” models allow for quick, large-scale adjustments, Ide said, and if a player drastically changes their hairstyle mid-season, they may need a new helmet. Rams equipment director Brendan Burger said he always advises players to wear their hair exactly as they would in a game during the fitting process. Otherwise the helmet may not be as comfortable or offer the best protection.
“That’s the key for me,” Burger said of players with dreadlocks. “If you don’t do that or just let them hang or whatever it is, then it’s going to be a whole different fit.”
But that’s a minor thing for gamers who don’t want to look uniform at all. And these manifestations may not be permanent. Warner said he expects to keep his dreadlocks for a long time. But the length can change. He trimmed them slightly this off-season, he said at the request of Sydney Hightower, his wife.
“They got a little too long for her liking,” Warner said, laughing.