Antonio Brown is once again using his cleats to honor legendary athlete that passed away in 2016.
The Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver took to Instagram, to show off his custom black and yellow Muhammad Ali cleats, featuring his iconic quote “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.” The shoes are incredible, as portraits of the boxing great are painted on the sides. On the flipside, appropriately, there’s a bee and a butterfly. The entire shoe is impressive.
Sunday vibes !
Float like a butterfly, sting like 🆎 !! #boomin 🐝 pic.twitter.com/9uUtCJpId1
— AB (@AB84) October 7, 2016
The NFL has come down hard on players for wearing custom cleats, but Brown’s recent choices of inspiration have the NFL holding back on any potential discipline. Brown is making a habit to wear cleats honoring recently fallen heroes of the sports world, as last week he was granted permission to wear a pair of custom Arnold Palmer cleats, assumedly made by the same designer. It would be both surprising and hypocritical if the NFL suddenly started fine for wearing the Ali cleats.
Brown might be getting a pass on the inspiring cleats, but he’s still got beef with the league. The 28-year-old, like many fans at home, needs more clarification on what constitutes an ‘excessive celebration’ penalty. Brown’s been fined multiple times for celebrating touchdowns and is sick with the NFL for not being clear on what’s allowed.
It’s a good thing the NFL approved the cleats, otherwise, Brown’s relationship with the league would be non-existent.
