Dec 1, 2012; Kansas City, MO, USA; A sign placed by fans is seen outside the Kansas City Chiefs practice facility the evening that Chiefs player Jovan Belcher (not pictured) committed a murder and suicide. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE
While the Kansas City Chiefs avoided controversy and did not give a public tribute to 25-year-old linebacker Jovan Belcher who took his own life at the team facility on Saturday morning, they did a tribute of their own within the walls of the team’s locker room.
The Chiefs kept Belcher’s uniform hanging in his locker on Sunday.
Photo via CBS Sports
While it may be a controversial decision to honor a man who murdered his 22-year-old girlfriend Kasandra Perkins and left the couple’s three-month old daughter Zoey an orphan, it is the kind of tribute that was meant for his teammates to remember the man that they knew as more than the animal he has become in the public eye.
For the Chiefs players, Belcher was a friend, a brother, a teammate. A member of the Kansas City family. They needed to remember their brother in a positive light in the locker room that they shared so many memories with as part of the grieving process.
Leaving his uniform hanging was an honorable thing to do, though it may not be a popular decision.
Before kick off, the Chiefs had another classy moment as they took a moment of silence for domestic abuse.
What do you think of the Chiefs keeping Belcher’s uniform hung in his locker? Let your opinion be heard in the comments section.
