FLOWERY BRANCH — During Falcons cornerback Jeff Okudah’s first week at Ohio State in 2017, his mother, Marie, died from Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
For this week’s “My Cause My Cleats” initiative by the NFL, Okudah will wear cleats honoring the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society when the Falcons (5-6) play the New York Jets (4-7) at 1 p.m. Sunday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.
“I just wanted to do something to honor my mom,” Okudah told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “She passed away (from) Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma back in 2017. So, I wanted to wear a cleat that would honor her cause. She would be proud of the organization and what they set out to accomplish. Just wanted to put them in the spotlight.”
Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell, who is from Atlanta and played at Westlake High, is supporting the Atlanta Mission on his cleats.
“For me, being from Atlanta, I see the community and you see a lot of homeless people out in the city,” Terrell said. “I just hooked up with the Atlanta Mission because they help people who need shelter and provide a lot of help (for the community). Some people don’t have a roof over their head or have meals from day to day, I just support what they offer to everybody in the city of Atlanta.”
Falcons wide receiver Drake London will support the Special Olympics.
“I just remember one of my childhood best friends, Michael Daly,” London said. “He moved away in the eighth grade, but he had a little brother named Mason, who was a special needs (child). I’m pretty sure that he had Down Syndrome.
“It was just always cool to see him and how they treated him as a regular person. It was really inspiring for me to grow up in that environment. ... They loved him and I loved Mason, too. That’s why I picked the Special Olympics.”
Falcons safety Richie Grant likes working with the disadvantaged youth in the city. He will support At-Promise West Boys & Girls Club.
“They are right by the stadium,” Grant said. “I went out there earlier this year. I wanted to hang out with the kids. It was nice.”
Grant wants to bring awareness to youth.
“It’s a nice cause for the kids, who probably don’t have a guardian at home or their mom or dad are dealing with some things so they might be with the grandmom or something like that. They have this after school program for them to hang out and get them out the streets, get them out of their world for a little bit.”
Grant has spent time at the program.
“Hanging out with the kids, it inspired me,” Grant said. “I love bringing awareness to the youth. I feel like I was in the same position in some similar why when I was coming up. It just feels good to give back.”
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
In total, 43 Falcons players and coaches selected causes to represent:
Player-Coach / Cause-Organization
Micah Abernathy/Ralph David Abernathy III Foundation
Tyler Allgeier/The White Ribbon Project
Jessie Bates III/JB3 Fund
Matthew Bergeron/Football Québec
Natrone Brooks/Breast Cancer Research Foundation
Calais Campbell/The Elephant in the Room
Lorenzo Carter/United Way
Frank Darby/Autism Speaks
Bud Dupree/First 48 Charity
Kaden Elliss/Georgia Kids Belong
John FitzPatrick/American Brain Tumor Association
Tre Flowers/The Giving Flowers Foundation
Joe Gaziano/Jimmy Fund
Richie Grant/At-Promise West Boys & Girls Club
Demone Harris/Center for Black Women’s Wellness
Taylor Heinicke/The Mighty Millie Foundation
Kyle Hinton/Adopt A Classroom
Sarah Hogan/The Coach Knapp Memorial Fund
Mack Hollins/Thumbs Up Mission
Timmy Horne/Play Like a Girl
Grady Jarrett/Grady Gives
Nate Landman/Responder Rescue
Chris Lindstrom/Best Buddies
Drake London/Special Olympics
Liam McCullough/Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Kaleb McGary/The Strong Side Foundation
Scotty Miller/Cerebral Palsy Foundation
Storm Norton/Alzheimer’s Association
Jeff Okudah/The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
Cordarrelle Patterson/Pregnancy and Infant Loss
Bradley Pinion/Compassion International
Kyle Pitts/Boys & Girls Club
Desmond Ridder/Mal Mal’s Pals
Bijan Robinson/Bijan Robinson Foundation
Matt Schaub/The Coach Knapp Memorial Fund
Keith Smith/Smith Effect Foundation
Andre Smith Jr./Black Women’s Health Imperative
Jonnu Smith/The Nu Family Foundation
A.J. Terrell Jr./Atlanta Mission
Carlos Washington Jr./American Society for Deaf Children
Barry Wesley/Covenant House Georgia
Logan Woodside/Skin Cancer Foundation
T.J. Yates/The Coach Knapp Memorial Fund
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