Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Carl Nassib (94) reacts after sacking New Orleans Saints quarterback Andy Dalton (14). | Douglas DeFelice-USA TODAY Sports

My Cause My Cleats is an annual NFL initiative to empower players and coaches to support causes near and dear to their hearts.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers LB Carl Nassib has chosen to support The Trevor Project with his cleats, the second straight year he’s done so.

Check out his cool cleats here:

Nassib is slated to wear the cleats when the Bucs host the New Orleans Saints this week on Monday Night Football.

The defensive end has been actively supporting The Trevor Project since he came out publicly in 2021 and donated $100,000 to the charity. Many other NFL and sports entities have followed suit, exploding the size and scope of the organization: The Trevor Project’s reported total revenue jumped from $29 million the year before Nassib came out, to $52 million the following fiscal year.

That’s the power of sports, and gay athletes coming out.

Nassib is one of only three NFL players to ever choose an LGBT-specific charity for his cleats, the other two being then-Miami Dolphins receiver Preston Williams and then-Cleveland Browns running back Johnny Stanton. This year Williams has chosen a charity he started, The Players Play Foundation, which focuses on ocean clean-up and recycling; Stanton is currently not with a team.

Given there are about 1,700 active athletes on NFL rosters for the league’s week 13, it’s again pretty disappointing to have only one athlete — the one publicly out gay athlete — selecting an LGBT-specific charity.

Still, there are various charities focusing on bullying and inclusion of women that might be of interest to some LGBT fans.

Two Bucs — KJ Britt and Donovan Smith — named the Women’s Sports Foundation as their charity. The group has been a big supporter of lesbians in sports. Billie Jean King, who is one of its founders, is friends with Bucs consultant and former head coach Bruce Arians.

There are also, according to the NFL, at least eight players who have selected anti-bullying, including:

While the anti-bullying charities are not LGBT-specific, they often — like with STOMP Out Bullying — have key LGBT components to their work.

You can follow Carl Nassib on Instagram.

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