It’s about commitment — on and off the field. Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins is the latest NFL player to adorably explain why he wears his wedding band on the field.
With more NFL players opting to wear silicone wedding rings during games, Cousins expressed to USA Today that he originally got the idea from his fellow NFL quarterback, Cincinnati Bengals standout Andy Dalton.
“I think Andy was the first guy I saw do that, and so I guess he blazed the trail,” said Cousins, who played Dalton’s team on Sunday. “My wife’s been a huge supporter to me, and I want people not to be afraid of marriage but to be excited about it.”
Cousins told the paper that he has an array of colors of the silicone band made by Qalo, $20. Oftentimes, players and performers (like country superstar Jason Aldean) will go for rubber versions of wedding bands while taking center-stage in the arena. The reason for this is typically to avoid the possibility of injury caused by gold or platinum pieces.
October 23, 2016: Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) hands the ball off to Washington Redskins running back Matt Jones (31) during game action between the Washington Redskins and the Detroit Lions during a regular season game played at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.
(Photo by Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“If guys have, like, a jammed finger or a smashed knuckle, it helps to have the rubber ring,” Cousins continued. “They can fit it over their knuckle as opposed to the normal ones … I would lose my real one if I wore it every day and took it off for practice and lifts.”
The rubber piece doesn’t replace the actual band. “I’ve actually been wearing this all season,” Cousins explained, “and when the offseason hits, I’ll probably switch.”
His wife, meanwhile, sports her wedding ring around-the-clock. “She wears a normal one, so that’s good,” Cousins concluded. “We get good use out of that one.”
The Redskins player is not the first athlete to speak out this season about wearing his ring on the field. In September, New York Jets player Ryan Fitzpatrick kissed his wedding ring — a platinum band — during a now-viral ESPN interview. “I love my wife,” he said with a grin.
