Trump Pardons Five Former NFL Players

President Donald Trump granted pardons to five former NFL players on Thursday, including one posthumously, for offenses ranging from perjury to drug trafficking, as announced by White House pardon adviser Alice Marie Johnson.

The recipients include Joe Klecko, a Hall of Fame defensive lineman for the New York Jets; Nate Newton, an offensive lineman who won three Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys; Jamal Lewis, a former Baltimore Ravens running back; Travis Henry, a running back who played for multiple teams including the Denver Broncos; and Billy Cannon, a 1959 Heisman Trophy winner who played in the AFL and NFL before his death in 2018.

Johnson, who herself received a pardon from Trump in 2018 after serving 21 years in prison for cocaine trafficking, highlighted the theme of redemption in her announcement on social media. "As football reminds us, excellence is built on grit, grace, and the courage to rise again. So is our nation," she wrote. She expressed gratitude to Trump for his commitment to second chances and noted that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones personally informed Newton of the pardon. All five players had completed their sentences years earlier.