Former Baltimore Ravens safety Ed Reed has condemned the White House for utilizing footage of his legendary Hall of Fame career to promote the war with Iran
08:12 ET, 10 Mar 2026Updated 08:12 ET, 10 Mar 2026
Ed Reed with his bust during his enshrinement into the Pro Football Hall of Fame at Tom Benson Hall Of Fame Stadium on August 3, 2019 in Canton, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
View 2 Images
Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed has hit out the White House's Iran War propaganda(Image: Getty Images)
Hall of Fame NFL safety Ed Reed has condemned the White House for using footage from his legendary career to promote America's war with Iran.
Last month, a coordinated attack from the US and Israel on Iran led to the killing of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The attack has had wide-ranging consequences. In a sporting context, it has left soccer fans worried about the safety of Iran's female soccer team after they refused to sing the Iranian national anthem ahead of their Asian Cup clash with South Korea, prompting state television to call for them to be punished.
Article continues below
It has also impacted Iraq's hopes of qualifying for the men's World Cup this summer, with their head coach, Graham Arnold, currently stuck in the United Arab Emirates due to the conflict in the Middle East ahead of their upcoming playoff match later this month in Mexico.
READ MORE: Iran women's soccer team could be granted asylum after FIFA intervention and 'traitors' attackREAD MORE: NFL starting quarterback pens 416-word statement after leaving team six years later
The attack upon Iran was, in the eyes of President Donald Trump's administration, completely justified.
Following the start of the conflict, official White House social media accounts have been posting war propaganda online, the latest of which featured NFL or college football players making huge defensive hits, followed by a target being hit in Iran.
Reed, one of the greatest players to have ever played football, featured in one of the clips, as did his former Ravens teammate, Ray Lewis.
Content cannot be displayed without consent
The pair played together for the majority of their careers in Baltimore, the highlight of which was helping the Ravens win Super Bowl XLVII in 2013, when they defeated the San Francisco 49ers.
However, while the video, set to AC/DC's Thunderstruck, championed the conflict in the Middle East, Reed shared his thoughts on his highlights being included, and the NFL Hall of Fame chastised the White House for using the footage.
"I do not approve this message," wrote Reed on X in response to the video.
Content cannot be displayed without consent
Reed wasn't the only NFL figure to voice disapproval of the footage. NFL Network's Rich Eisen also replied to the post, writing, "Every one of these hits would get flagged."
Others also pointed out that the White House's captioning of the video, "Touchdown," made zero sense, given none of the NFL clips resulted in a score. Of course, the insinuation from the White House video was that the "Touchdown" was the target in Iran being hit.
Ed Reed #20 of the Baltimore Ravens holds up the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the San Francisco 49ers during Super Bowl XLVII at Mercedes-Benz Superdome on February 3, 2013 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
View 2 Images
Ed Reed helped the Ravens achieve Super Bowl glory in 2013(Image: Getty Images)
During his legendary career, Reed was a nine-time All-Pro selection (five first-team and three second-team appearances).
Article continues below
He also won the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year award in 2004, leading the NFL in interceptions three times during his career. He finished his career with the seventh most interceptions in the regular season with 64 picks.
And following his retirement in 2013, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a first-ballot inductee back in 2019.