Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers to Advocate for 40-Plus Charitable Causes Through the NFL's 2022 'My Cause My Cleats' Initiative

Buccaneers’ players, coaches and staff will wear customized cleats and shoes to support causes that hit home on Monday night

Nov 29, 2022 at 01:04 PM

Brianna Dix

Staff Writer/Reporter

It is that time of year again. Boxes are arriving to locker rooms around the league, ready to be unveiled. On Monday, December 5, more than 60 players, coaches and staff from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will participate in the NFL's annual My Cause My Cleats campaign, an initiative created for NFL players to reveal their passions off the field and to wear their heart on their cleats. Players choose a cause that has personally impacted their own lives and display that chosen organization or foundation on custom designed cleats. Buccaneers' players and staff will showcase a myriad of colors and personalized art supporting 40-plus different charitable organizations when Tampa Bay hosts the New Orleans Saints for Monday Night Football at 8:15 p.m. ET in Week 13.

Starting on Tuesday, Buccaneers' players will reveal the stories behind their personalized cleats, along with images of the specialized designs using the hashtag #MyCauseMyCleats. The Buccaneers worked closely with Stadium Custom Kicks, Mache Customs, Sean Vergara and Elijah Rutland to create this year's campaign designs. 2022 marks the seventh consecutive season that NFL players are raising awareness for non-profit organizations and causes off the field, with more than 1,000 players throughout the league annually participating. My Cause My Cleats will be celebrated around the NFL leading into the holiday season during all Week 13 games.

Click Here To View All The Cleats

During the Bucs' Monday night contest against the Saints at Raymond James Stadium, Head Coach Todd Bowles will wear specially designed sneakers representing Autism Speaks – an organization dedicated to bettering understanding and acceptance of people with autism, along with advancing research into causes and improving interventions for autism spectrum disorder and related conditions – in support of his son Tyson. In addition, Owner/Co-Chairman Joel Glazer, General Manager Jason Licht, Vice President of Player Personnel John Spytek, Vice President of Football Administration Mike Greenberg, Director of College Scouting Mike Biehl, Director of Pro Scouting Rob McCartney, Director of Football Operations Shelton Quarles, and Outside Linebackers Coach Larry Foote, will all be donning sneakers in support of the National CMV Foundation. Spytek co-founded the National CMV Foundation with his wife, Kristen, in honor of their daughter, Evelyn Grace, who passed away from CMV in 2014. Defensive lineman Will Gholston and guard Luke Goedeke will also be wearing cleats to pay tribute to Evelyn Grace and the work of the National CMV Foundation.

Inside linebacker Lavonte David will support Big Brothers Big Sisters, where he serves as a national ambassador. The mission of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay is to foster and encourage one-on-one mentoring relationships that empower youth. Through his own experience as a "Little," running back Rachaad White credits his "Big," John, for molding him into the man he is today. White will join David in support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay. In remembrance of his late mother Sally Waterstradt Otton, tight end Cade Otton'scleats will benefit the Michael J. Fox Foundation, an organization aimed at finding a cure for Parkinson's disease through funded research and to ensure the progress of improved therapies for those living with Parkinson's. In support of Otton, fellow tight end Cameron Brate will wear cleats honoring the foundation. Center Ryan Jensen, the team's nominee for the NFL Salute to Service Award presented by USAA, will support T.A.P.S. (Tragedy Assistance Program for Surviors), an organization Jensen has worked with since entering the league in 2013.

For the first time in Tampa Bay, the Women's Sports Foundation will be represented on the field and in the owner's suite. Owner Darcie Glazer Kassewitz, tackle Donovan Smith, and linebacker K.J. Britt will wear custom shoes and cleats to honor the foundation. The trio is passionate about cultivating an environment that empowers girls and women to accomplish their goals in the sports industry and in life, as well as raise their daughters to do the same. The non-profit organization advocates, educates, funds, and fuels women and girls as they advance through life.

Several Buccaneers will represent their own foundations, including receiver Mike Evans (Mike Evans Family Foundation), outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett (Fifty50 Foundation), running back Gio Bernard (Bernard Family Foundation), receiver Breshad Perriman (Breshad Perriman Foundation), inside linebacker Devin White (Get Live 45 Foundation), quarterback Tom Brady (TB12 Foundation), receiver Chris Godwin (Team Godwin Foundation) and safety Logan Ryan (Ryan Animal Rescue Foundation, RARF).

Here is the full list of each Buccaneer player that is participating in this year's 2022 campaign:

Shaquil Barrett - Fifty50 Foundation
Gio Bernard - Bernard Family Foundation
Tom Brady - TB12 Foundation and Florida Disaster Fund
Cameron Brate - Michael J. Fox Foundation
K.J. Britt - Women's Sports Foundation
Jake Camarda - Best Buddies
Anthony Chesley Jr. - Believe in U Youth Foundation
Lavonte David - Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay
Carlton Davis III - Metropolitan Ministries
Jamel Dean - NAMI - National Alliance on Mental Illness
Dee Delaney - Gigi's Playhouse
Mike Evans - Mike Evans Family Foundation
Olakunle Fatukasi - Metropolitan Ministries
Blaine Gabbert - Army Ranger Lead The Way Fund
Will Gholston - National CMV Foundation
Ulysees Gilbert III - Moffitt Cancer Center
Chris Godwin - Team Godwin Foundation
Luke Goedeke - National CMV Foundation
Ryan Griffin - The C4 Foundation
Robert Hainsey - The C4 Foundation
Akiem Hicks - American Diabetes Association
Ryan Jensen - T.A.P.S. – Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors
Julio Jones - Black Girls Code and Trayvon Martin Foundation
Ko Kieft - ATLAS of Sioux Center
Patrick Laird - DonorsChoose
Nick Leverett - American Cancer Society
Scotty Miller - Special Olympics
John Molchon - Mark 10:14 Program
Carl Nassib - The Trevor Project
Anthony Nelson - Wounded Warrior Project
Pat O' Connor - Christmas Without Cancer
Cade Otton - Michael J. Fox Foundation
Breshad Perriman - Breshad Perriman Foundation
Kyle Rudolph - Change Starts with Me
Logan Ryan - RARF – Ryan Animal Rescue Foundation
Justine Skule - National Cervical Cancer Coalition
Donovan Smith - Women's Sports Foundation
Aaron Stinnie - The Big Man Foundation
Deven Thompkins - Gigi's Playhouse
Zach Triner - HEADstrong Foundation
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka - One More Child
Vita Vea - Moffitt Cancer Center
Josh Wells - Okoa Refuge
Devin White - Get Live 45 Foundation
Rachaad White - Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay
Antoine Winfield Jr. - Heart Gallery of Tampa
Tristan Wirfs - Tampa Firefighters Charity Fund

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TAMPA, FL - November 23, 2022 - Outside Linebacker Shaquil Barrett #58 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' cleats for 2022 My Cause My Cleats. Photo By Tori Richman/Tampa Bay Buccaneers