Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams painted his fingernails ahead of the team’s NFL Monday Night Football match against the Minnesota Vikings. And Williams embraced suicide prevention with his major move.
On three of the fingers on his left hand for the MNF game, Caleb Williams clearly painted the numbers 988. That is the national hotline aimed to help people avoid taking their own lives.
On his left hand, he painted a couple nails with particular colors. One was a light blue and another purple. The third finger had a black ribbon with a light blue accent.
A close-up of the Monday Night Football fingernails of Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams:
Caleb Williams supports a hotline with his fingernails. Does he give a shout-out to trans people? The suicide prevention ribbon certainly seems to. | David Banks-Imagn Images
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What is that ribbon? We at Outsports were not immediately sure of its meaning, though it seems to be a suicide prevention ribbon.
Yet no doubt, trans people take their own lives far more frequently than cisgender people.
So it’s not particularly wild to think that Williams, with these particular messages on both hands of his fingers, meant to send a message about acceptance of trans people.
Williams has been the subject of conversation about painted fingernails for a couple years. As the quarterback for the USC Trojans, Williams painted his nails often.
He did so when he arrived as the starting quarterback of the Chicago Bears last year as well. However, his nails went unpainted later in the season as the team struggled during his rookie season.
For a man who has chosen to express himself so openly, and who has clearly rejected so many social and gender norms, it wouldn’t be surprising if he considered the trans community in his fingernail choice. Though we have no confirmation of that.
The Bears have struggled for many years. The team hasn’t made the NFL Playoffs since 2020, well before Williams joined the team. Chicago hasn’t won and NFL Playoff game since 2010, and the Bears haven’t won the Super Bowl since the 1985 season.
Is Caleb Williams back now? And is he ready to lead the Bears to heights the club hasn’t seen in years? Will the second-year quarterback for the legendary Chicago Bears let. himself loose and let the paint on his fingernails speak for itself? As he lets his passing and running drive the Bears offense?
With his colorful expression on the NFL’s first MNF game of the season, we can only hope so.
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