Why NFL player helmets have messages written on the back like ‘Be Love’ and ‘It Takes All of Us’?

If you’re watching an NFL playoff game in 2024 and you’re seeing players with messages written on the backs of their helmets, you may be wondering: What’s that all about?

In the 2024 wild card round, we saw helmets with “Be Love” on the back, while others have messages like “It Takes All of Us.”

Here’s why: Back in 2021, players were allowed to wear social justice messages on their helmets. They could choose from six different decals, and the “Be Love” was to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and that message is one from The King Center.

There’s your answer!

This year, teams participating in all six Wild Card games are wearing MLK and Be Love decals on the back of their helmets to celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy.

Be Love, a central principle of @TheKingCenter, is also stenciled on each field in honor of Dr. King.… pic.twitter.com/l0ZbVpd0OR

— NFL (@NFL) January 15, 2024

(AP Photo/Matt Patterson)