Are their pants too short? Too long? Are their socks white enough? NFL players sometimes don’t even realize they’re in violation of dress rules until they get an envelope in their locker. Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images
MINKAH FITZPATRICK‘S MIND rolls through what seems like a million possibilities in the mere seconds before each snap. What’s the offensive formation? Are he and his Miami Dolphins teammates in the right coverage? What potential routes might the opposing receivers be running?
There’s so much to consider. And, yet, nowhere on that list of concerns is the precise length of his pants. Much to chagrin of the Dolphins safety, the NFL is actually quite interested in this.
This became evident years ago when Fitzpatrick joined the long list of NFL players to be fined for a uniform violation. Even subtle violations can trigger stiff financial consequences that run well into the five figures, intended to be deterrents to noncompliance.
But Fitzpatrick didn’t exactly heed the message.
“I’m the poster boy for uniform fines,” said Fitzpatrick, who became well known as a repeat offender of the NFL’s strict uniform policies during his six seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“First, they said my pants were too high [above the knee],” he continued. “So, I had to bring my pants down. Then, they were like, my socks didn’t match. I didn’t have enough white or enough black or whatever showing. All the little nuances.”
Uniform violations can stem from players seeking comfort and flexibility, as is often the case with the improper use of knee pads or pant length. In other cases, a player’s faux pas can result from their search for swag.
#Cardinals CB Kei’Trel Clark posted on IG that he was fined $5,797 by the NFL for wearing an unapproved black towel during last week’s game vs. the Colts.
🤦‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/QakPIkmm76
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) October 16, 2025
“They have a whole manual for what they want us to look like,” Fitzpatrick said. “They want us to look like that mannequin, you know? With the high-pulled socks, with the half white, half black or half team color. It looks crazy. Nobody wants to look like that.
“I get it. They don’t want us to all look sloppy. We represent the league. But I think if we’re not looking ridiculous, then just let us live.”
NFL players look at their NBA counterparts longingly. While pro basketball certainly has guidelines, NFL players look at, say, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James sporting a pair of pink basketball sneakers and wonder — what’s the harm?
“And he’ll still go drop 30 [points],” Steelers tight end Jonnu Smith said.
The NFL’s rules aren’t going anywhere, though, leaving players to navigate existing guidelines or face the consequences. But that doesn’t mean players have to like them. A group of prominent players spoke to ESPN about their likes and dislikes of how NFL attire is policed and what elements they wish could be modified.
EVEN FIVE YEARS later, Houston Texans receiver Nico Collins remembers the shock of opening a letter left in his locker following a preseason game.
“It was after the Green Bay game in my rookie year,” he said. “That was my first time getting fined. I just saw this white envelope, and I was like, ‘What is this?’ I read it and it was a uniform violation. I was like, ‘What did I do?'”
A few weeks later, another letter arrived.
“I guess that was them saying, ‘All right, bro, that’s enough,'” Collins said.
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Even for a player like Collins, who now earns more than $24 million per season after signing an extension in 2024, the cost of uniform violations don’t go unnoticed. A first offense can draw a fine of $5,797, with future violations costing players $17,389.
But Collins’ violations, he said, were not based in a willful disregard rooted in his fashion preferences. Collins said his fines — he has drawn plenty, he said — are typically about the length of his pants. Collins is among the many skill players who dislike their pants and knee pads covering their entire knee because, they say, it slows them down and makes them less flexible in the open field.
“And when you’re tall, I can’t help that when I run, they’re going to rise up regardless,” said Collins, who is 6-foot-4. “It got to the point where I couldn’t even walk on the field for warmups without hearing, ‘Number 12 — pants!’ I’m like, ‘What do you y’all want me to do?'”
That exchange was between Collins and the uniform inspectors that roam the field at every NFL stadium, typically former players who act as the uniform police. They are tasked with examining players before and during games for uniform and safety compliance. Inspectors can vary in their levels of scrutiny from stadium to stadium, players say.
“I just feel like it’s a little inconsistent,” Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn said. “I dress the same way every game, but I got fined two or three times last year. It’s annoying.”
The inspectors enforce a wide range of guidelines. Among them are the use of proper equipment such as pads, appropriate chin straps and approved helmet visors; approved shoe and glove brands (unaffiliated brands can be used if the logos are completely obscured); and standard uniform violations, such as improperly worn socks.
Take a look at specific examples of @NFL uniform & equipment rules/violations for each team: https://t.co/Z3lorCHeUx pic.twitter.com/qU7mF5gN8V
— NFL Football Operations (@NFLFootballOps) February 15, 2016
Some of those regulations exist for the protection of players. Others are in place for uniformity, which the NFL rarely compromises on. The NFL’s game operations manual is explicit. It reads: “A player’s appearance on the field conveys a message regarding the image of the league and directly affects the league’s reputation and success.”
Perhaps the greatest example of how seriously the NFL takes this topic is the enforcement of socks. It’s the thing players seem to complain about the most. The rules around socks are strangely specific: White socks or tights showing from the top of the shoe to the midcalf and then an approved team color stocking from the midcalf to the bottom of the pant leg, which must be pulled below the knee. Anything outside of that is subject to a violation.
This was what Smith said led to his only uniform fine.
“I guess I wasn’t showing enough white, so they’re like, ‘You got to show more white,'” he said.
Smith said his fine was rescinded, but players shouldn’t count on that. The NFL says about $4 million in uniform-related fines have been collected since 2011, with the money being distributed to a variety of charities.
Bobby Wagner would like to see the NFL become more lenient on certain uniform codes, such as for visors, which are supposed to be clear, except for medical exceptions. Charles Brock/Icon Sportswire
Shoe color is also heavily regulated. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was fined $5,628 last season for wearing mismatching Jordan cleats, one of which wasn’t outside of his team’s standard colors. Players may wear footwear that is black, white or a “constitutional” team color, according to NFL rules.
Eagles teammate A.J. Brown can attest to how serious a matter this is for the NFL. He was asked to change cleats during the first quarter of a “Monday Night Football” game in 2023 when the team was informed his “highlight green” cleats were not in compliance. Brown said later he was told by the team’s equipment manager that “they were going to pull me out of the game.”
After two offensive series, Brown went to the sideline and changed his shoes.
THE NFL’S UNIFORM rules are a fact of life for players. But in a perfect world where the rules were more flexible, what would players wish to see permitted?
The answer, generally, is rules that allow for some individuality.
Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton said he has never been fined for a uniform violation. His team’s equipment staff even heard from league officials last season that his game-day attire was “exemplary” and held him up as someone teammates should emulate.
But even Hamilton wishes there was a bit more wiggle room.
40 Years Apart: Jalen Hurts receives “banned” letter from NFL after wearing Air Jordans in violation of league’s uniform policy. He will be fined $5,628.
“We’re paying the fine,” Jordan Brand tells me. “You can’t ban greatness.”
Fine comes 40 years after Michael Jordan’s black… pic.twitter.com/EM63vrwwOq
— Nick DePaula (@NickDePaula) December 20, 2024
“I wish I could just wear ankle socks and not have to [wear] the tights,” he said. “And I would maybe like to write some [messages] on my sleeve, stuff like that. It’s just showing individuality at the end of the day.”
Hamilton added, “NBA dudes, MLB guys, they don’t have a helmet over their face so people know who they are. I think for us, some [individuality] would be good marketingwise.”
Washington Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner added his thoughts.
“I think they could be more lenient on the visors,” he said. Current rules allow only clear helmet visors except in the case of medical exemptions.
“And I think the colorful cleats could be a thing, too,” he added. “And some guys write messages on things. A lot of it has real meaning. … It might be somebody that’s deceased or whatever. Maybe it just kind of reminds them of someone. So, I think that type of thing I think would be cool.”
Horn had an almost identical wish list.
George Kittle wore a pair of blue Nike SB Dunk cleats highlighted by lots of shaggy faux fur during the Pro Bowl Games and said he would try to wear them for the 49ers, but he hasn’t done so … . yet. Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images
“I wish we could have colored visors and any kind of cleats,” he said. “That’d be cool. It’d be like Madden — create your own player.”
Players are, of course, free to test the limits. During February’s Pro Bowl Games, San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle wore a pair of blue Nike SB Dunk cleats highlighted by lots of shaggy faux fur. Kittle, a self-described sneakerhead who said he had the shoes specially made, was asked if he could ever see himself wearing them in a game.
“I’m going to try,” he said.
But as Kittle’s team took the field this past Monday night, in a game critical to the Niners’ playoff position, Kittle did what he has done for most every other game in his career: He donned a pair of conformist white and red Nike cleats, cleanly blending in with the rest of his teammates.
The 49ers beat the Indianapolis Colts and Kittle saved himself several thousand dollars.
