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Feeding the ‘demon inside’: Ex-employee tells how and why he stole $22 million from Jaguars

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Feeding the ‘demon inside’: Ex-employee tells how and why he stole  million from Jaguars

Feb. 2, 2023 began like any other morning for Amit Patel. He was sitting in his cubicle on the ground floor of EverBank Stadium, home to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Patel, a manager in the team’s financial department, was closing out the last cycle of expenses, as he did at the beginning of each month.

When Jaguars chief financial officer Mark Sirota asked Patel to come to Sirota’s office, he thought it might be to discuss a new project. But then Patel got there and Sirota lowered his voice and asked Patel to shut the door behind him. Sirota then told Patel a delegation from NFL security was in a suite upstairs waiting to talk to him.

Sirota escorted Patel through the office, then the bowels of the stadium. As they made their way to an elevator, Patel looked back and saw a contingent of human relations officials and team security trailing them. When he arrived on the fourth floor and stepped into a suite, he was met by one of the team’s lawyers and three men in suits, one of whom was sitting behind a laptop.

“I already knew they had everything on the computer in front of them. My entire gambling history,” Patel, 31, told The Athletic in an interview from his attorney’s office in Jacksonville last week.

When the NFL security team asked where Patel got the money to place the bets they had discovered, he lied. He said it was from family wealth and cryptocurrency. When they asked whether they could have access to his phone and computer, he looked to the Jaguars’ lawyer for advice, only to realize the lawyer was there to protect the team, not him. He handed his devices over and the lawyer took him for a walk around the concourse. As they walked, Patel feverishly calculated what those security officials might identify as they transferred data from his computer and phone.

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When his boss later asked him for his password to the company’s virtual credit card program, Patel knew it was over. He was caught.

FBI investigators subsequently discovered that Patel, over a four-year period, had embezzled more than $22 million from the Jaguars by creating fraudulent charges on the club’s virtual credit card and then covering his tracks by sending falsified files to the team’s accounting department. Patel’s attorney said the vast majority of what he stole he gambled away via online sports gambling sites. The government said he also used the money to fund a jet-set lifestyle and to purchase vehicles, a condominium, a designer watch worth over $95,000 and other extravagances.

Last Tuesday, in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville, Patel stood before a judge, voice quivering, and said he was “ashamed” of his actions. The prosecution asked for a sentence of 84 months, emphasizing the scale of his fraud, the media attention the case received and the message it would send to others who might “steal millions and live like a king.” Patel’s attorney asked for probation, citing his client’s gambling addiction and subsequent recovery efforts as reasons for leniency.

Patel received a 78-month sentence.

In his first interview since he pleaded guilty last year, Patel said that after months of anticipation, dread and unease, he feels a sense of relief to finally face his punishment.

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“I’m dealing with the consequences of something that happened a year and a half ago. I’ve been a completely different person since then through my recovery,” Patel said. “I’m dealing with something that’s happened in the past when I was a different person.”

Patel had roughly two dozen friends and family on hand at his sentencing, some of whom made statements vouching for his character. His older brother said he was the prototypical golden child who excelled at sports and school only to be derailed by alcohol abuse and gambling addiction. His high school teacher said he was a “model student.” His girlfriend insisted he was a good person who had taken responsibility for his actions and committed to a life of sobriety.

Government attorneys described him as a fabulist who conned his company and enjoyed the spoils. Court filings included pictures of Patel partying at swanky hotels, flying on private planes and flashing expensive bottles of champagne. In that filing, the prosecutor handling the case wrote that Patel continued to “enjoy the finer things” even after he was fired. Megha Parekh, the Jaguars chief legal counsel, issued a blistering assessment of Patel, stating that his actions invited an inordinate amount of scrutiny on the organization and diverted key resources and time from current employees: “He was our teammate and he betrayed us.”

Those depictions, while seemingly in contrast, coexist in Patel’s retelling, and he frequently toed the line between expressing remorse for his actions and ascribing those actions to a problem outside his control.

“I was battling with a secret addiction that nobody knew about,” Patel said. “Everyone thought I was doing great, dandy. You know, on Instagram they see you having fun, you’re with your friends and family, but there’s a mental demon inside.”

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Patel grew up in a strict household where his parents, who immigrated from India, expected academic excellence from their two sons. He said he was impacted greatly by two losses earlier in his life: Patel’s father died of a heart attack when Patel was 13, and one of his best friends died in a car accident nine years later when he was in college. By that time, Patel said his drinking, drug use and gambling were all-consuming.

But Patel also had an abundance of love and support coupled with ambition and opportunity. He was, as the government attorney described in court, an example of the American Dream. Popular and well-liked among his classmates. Elected class president at the Paxon School for Advanced Studies in Jacksonville. Captain of his high school lacrosse team. And he had an entrepreneurial spirit, dabbling in e-commerce and side projects that suffused him with cash and freedom.

Like many people his age, Patel was drawn to gambling during the online poker boom of the early aughts and the ubiquity of fantasy sports. He said he first experienced the rush of gambling on a cruise trip to the Bahamas the summer before he left for college. The cruise featured a poker tournament and, though his mom forbade him to enter because he had previously squandered money on online poker by using her credit card, his stepfather slipped him a $100 bill.

A crowd formed around the poker table and he was in the middle of it all, winning the tournament and a $2,000 prize. He paid his mother back for a portion of the cruise and bought his then-girlfriend a necklace. He later posed for a picture with the money splayed out on a table and made that his Facebook profile avatar.

Patel enrolled at Florida State in 2010 but said the combination of partying and gambling led him to switch from his major of choice (engineering) to something more manageable (accounting). Poor grades prompted his transfer to Flagler College as he prioritized gambling over all else. He took a bus to an in-person poker tournament at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, Florida, where he finished 15th out of about 1,500 entrants, winning almost $7,500. But he was able to return to FSU for an MBA. Out of college, he went to work for Deloitte, and while there he used his corporate credit card to fund his gambling habit. But he avoided trouble because his brother helped him pay it off.

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In 2018, he landed his dream job with the Jaguars, a team he grew up supporting. By that point, he’d progressed from playing fantasy football to betting on baseball via offshore accounts to placing wagers on essentially anything he could. “You wake up in the middle of the night and you’re betting on Turkish women’s volleyball,” he said.

He’d ignore his mom’s calls, forget to brush his teeth, stay up late into the night, constantly refreshing his phone for scores and highlights while his girlfriend slept next to him. Once, in Las Vegas, he drove to the Nevada/Arizona border just so he could place a daily fantasy sports bet, which isn’t permitted in Nevada. When his bank account was low, he’d sell personal items, donate plasma, take out payday loans or rustle up work doing cell phone repairs. There were times he’d visit the ATM multiple times in a day, depositing and depleting.

“The worst part is there’s always a win around the corner,” Patel said. “And so that’s what you’re always chasing.”

In September 2019, Patel, then a mid-level employee with the Jaguars, was in the hole from gambling losses, his credit card maxed out. He was drunk, trying to think of a way to dig himself out of debt and feeling the “itch.” That’s when he allowed himself to consider using funds from the company VCC program he managed.

“I mean, the devil inside me is like let me just deposit $25,000 from the card. I’ll turn it into $50,000. I’ll put the $25,000 back,” Patel said.

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Given the level of attrition and lack of oversight within the Jaguars’ depleted accounting and finance department, the prospect of getting caught seemed low. In corporate finance, there is a concept called the fraud triangle: Opportunity. Incentive. Rationalization. Patel had all three.

The hole deepened as Patel’s gambling losses mounted. And so he continued using funds obtained from the Jaguars VCC program to place astronomical bets via FanDuel and DraftKings in hopes that he’d win big and save himself. Patel said his VIP rep at FanDuel would add 10 percent to his account for every $600,000 he spent, in addition to entry fees that were refunded and travel perks he was comped. A spokesperson for FanDuel declined to comment as the company still considers the situation an “ongoing matter.”

In the early days of the scheme, Patel would see an unannounced meeting placed on his calendar and believe the team had figured out his subterfuge. As the years passed and his actions went undetected, that fear never abated, he said, but he just couldn’t stop.

He’s not sure what tipped off NFL security early in 2023. (Employees of NFL teams are forbidden from betting on games.) But he recounted some brazen moves he made in the months before his termination. Twice, he bet on the Jaguars – once while he was in Kansas City for a game against the Chiefs — an $18,000 six-way parlay involving five UFC fights and the Jags covering the spread. (The five fights went his way, he said, but the Jags didn’t cover.) Later, he said he bet “a few hundred thousand dollars” on a Jaguars-Titans game, another loss. He also tried to withdraw money from a wire to place bets through FanDuel, which triggered a notification from the anti-money laundering team at the site. (He said his account was suspended after he unsuccessfully answered questions about the source of his funds.)

“I was so far in the hole I was like ‘Maybe I can win a million really quick on this game and pay them back,’” he said. “I was desperate.”

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In the immediate aftermath of getting fired by the Jaguars, Patel did not stop gambling. Instead, he continued scrambling to try to win and pay the team back. An absurd idea, he recognizes now, considering the sum he owed.

Patel was in rehab by the time the FBI got involved. His attorney referred him for alcohol and drug abuse, as well as gambling addiction. He cooperated with the government’s investigation and in December 2023 pleaded guilty to charges of fraud and an illegal monetary transaction.

In the 99 days he spent in rehab, Patel said he felt guilt and shame for the pain he caused his loved ones, friends and coworkers. But he also felt grateful. “I was so glad to be out of that torturous, endless cycle in my head,” he said.

Gambler’s Anonymous works similarly to Alcoholics Anonymous. You work the 12 steps. Identify the “character defects” that contribute to addiction. Patel still battles those, with perfectionism and ego surfacing more prevalently than he would like.

He bristled at the suggestion that he was a neophyte and historically bad gambler, as one report suggested. He was bothered by news accounts that only one person attended his plea hearing in his defense. (He told friends and family not to attend, he said.) And he pushes back on the government’s assertion that he was driven solely by greed.

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He contends that he bought some luxury items to flip for profits to subsidize his gambling, while also acknowledging that he was frittering away money on a country club membership, spa services and more. Though the majority of the money he stole from the Jaguars ended up with FanDuel or DraftKings, the government contends that Patel transferred over $5 million to his PayPal and other financial accounts.

He admits he enjoyed the trappings that came with having access to millions of dollars but said the cost of certain trips and events were reimbursed by the online betting sites, an incentive for him to continue spending with them: “They just give you this illusion that you’re winning because they’re just making so much money off of you that they need to keep you happy and keep you gambling,” he said.

Patel said he still has urges to gamble — the most recent one came a few months ago when he got an email from the Hard Rock Hotel Casino group, commemorating the opening of its new sportsbook. Patel talked about it in the GA meeting he organized; the group now meets regularly in a local church.

“Not everyone will get addicted to gambling,” Patel said. “But everyone can get addicted.”

Patel will continue treatment while incarcerated. He is slated to begin his sentence within the next 90 days. His attorney requested he be placed at the federal facility closest to his family in Jacksonville. When he gets out, he’ll be put on a payment plan – $250 a month directed to the Jaguars. Both the prosecuting attorney and the judge acknowledged he is unlikely to ever pay back the entire sum he stole from the NFL franchise.

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Said Patel: “I’ve just got to deal with these consequences and move on with my life and see how much I can use this to help a lot of other people.”

(Illustration: Eamonn Dalton / The Athletic; photos: Don Juan Moore, Julio Aguilar, Perry Knotts, Don Juan Moore / Getty Images; courtesy of U.S. Attorney)

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Eileen Gu reflects on decision to leave Team USA for China: ‘A lot of people just don’t understand’

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Eileen Gu reflects on decision to leave Team USA for China: ‘A lot of people just don’t understand’

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Eileen Gu released a statement on social media Monday, reflecting on her controversial decision to compete for Team China despite being born and raised in the U.S. 

Gu’s statement tied the decision back to her passion for promoting women’s sports, and encouraging young girls to pursue sports. 

“I gave my first speech on women in sports and title IX when I was 11 years old. I talked about being the only girl on my ski team, and, despite attending an all-girls’ school from Monday through Friday, becoming best friends with my teammates on the weekends through the common language of sport,” Gu wrote on Instagram. 

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Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China poses for photos after the awarding ceremony of the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026. (Photo by Wang Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images) (Wang Peng/Xinhua via Getty Images)

“At the same time, I was made painfully aware of the lack of representation – at age 9, I felt that I was somehow representing all women every time I stepped in the terrain park. Landing tricks was about more than progression … it was about disproving the derisive implication of what it meant to ‘ski like a girl.’”

Gu went on to express gratitude for the one season in which she did compete for the U.S. 

“When I was 15, I announced my decision to compete for China. At the time, I had spent one season on the US team, and had been lucky enough to meet my heroes in person. I am forever grateful for that season, and continue to maintain a close relationship with the team. I had spent every summer in China since I was 8 setting up summer camps on trampoline and dry slope for kids and adults, ranging from 7 to 47 years old, so I knew the industry was tiny. I felt like I knew everyone,” she added. 

“Skiing for Team China meant the opportunity to uplift others through the universal culture of sport, and to introduce freeskiing to hundreds of millions of people who had never heard of it, especially with the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics around the corner.”

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Gu’s statement concluded by acknowledging that certain people “don’t understand” her decision to compete for China over the U.S., while insisting the choice maximized the impact she would have. 

“I can look back now, at 22, and tell 12 year old Eileen that there are now terrain parks full of little girls, who will never doubt their place in the sport. I can tell 15 year old me that there are now millions of girls who have started skiing since then, in China and worldwide,” Gu wrote. 

“A lot of people won’t understand or believe that I made a decision to create the greatest amount of positive impact on the world stage that I could, at this age, given my interests and passions. Three golds and six medals later, I can confidently say was once a dream is now a reality.”

Gu has become a target for global criticism this Olympics for her decision to represent China while remaining silent on the country’s alleged human rights abuses.

In an interview with Time magazine, Gu was asked her thoughts on China’s alleged persecution of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in Xinjiang. 

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“I haven’t done the research. I don’t think it’s my business. I’m not going to make big claims on my social media,” Gu answered.

“I’m just more of a skeptic when it comes to data in general. … So, it’s not like I can read an article and be like, ‘Oh, well, this must be the truth.’ I need to have a ton of evidence. I need to maybe go to the place, maybe talk to 10 primary source people who are in a location and have experienced life there.

“Then I need to go see images. I need to listen to recordings. I need to think about how history affects it. Then I need to read books on how politics affects it. This is a lifelong search. It’s irresponsible to ask me to be the mouthpiece for any agenda.”

More controversy surrounding Gu erupted after The Wall Street Journal reported that Gu and another American-born athlete who now competes for China, were paid a combined $6.6 million by the Beijing Municipal Sports Bureau in 2025.

Gu is the highest-paid Winter Olympics athlete in the world, making an estimated $23 million in 2025 alone due to partnerships with Chinese companies, including the Bank of China and western companies. 

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Her alignment with China prompted criticism from many Americans this Olympics, including Vice President J.D. Vance. 

“I certainly think that someone who grew up in the United States of America who benefited from our education system, from the freedoms and liberties that makes this country a great place, I would hope they want to compete with the United States of America,” Vance said in an interview on Fox News’ “The Story with Martha MacCallum.”

Later, when Gu was asked if she feels “like a bit of a punching bag for a certain strand of American politics at the moment,” she said she does. 

“I do,” she said. “So many athletes compete for a different country. … People only have a problem with me doing it because they kind of lump China into this monolithic entity, and they just hate China. So, it’s not really about what they think it’s about.

“And, also, because I win. Like, if I wasn’t doing well, I think that they probably wouldn’t care as much, and that’s OK for me. People are entitled to their opinions.”

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Silver medalist Eileen Gu of China attends the awarding ceremony of the freestyle skiing women’s freeski big air event at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Livigno, Italy, Feb. 16, 2026.  (Hongxiang/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Gu has claimed she was “physically assaulted” for the decision.  

“The police were called. I’ve had death threats. I’ve had my dorm robbed,” Gu told The Athletic

“I’ve gone through some things as a 22-year-old that I really think no one should ever have to endure, ever.”

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Arnold, Jamie Lee Curtis, Janet Evans, Carl Lewis new members of California’s Hall of Fame

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Arnold, Jamie Lee Curtis, Janet Evans, Carl Lewis new members of California’s Hall of Fame

From Hollywood actors to Olympic athletes and politicians, California’s newest Hall of Fame class runs the gamut in talent and achievements.

Academy Award-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis and former governor/action star Arnold Schwarzenegger, Olympic champions Janet Evans and Carl Lewis, authors Riane Eisler and Terry McMillan, chef Nobuyuki Matsuhisa, groundbreaking ensemble Mariachi Reyne de Los Ángeles and former state Democratic leader John L. Burton all earned a spot into the assembly of distinct Californians, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Tuesday.

This class, the 19th in state history, will be formally enshrined during a ceremony at the California Museum in Sacramento on March 19 as a “celebration of their contributions to civic life, creativity, and social progress,” according to Newsom’s office.

The inductees “have reshaped our culture and our communities. Resilient and innovative, these leaders and luminaries represent the best of the California spirit,” Newsom said in a statement.

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To be inducted, candidates must have lived in California for at least five years and “have made achievements benefiting the state, nation and world,” according to the California Hall of Fame website. To date, 166 Californians have been selected by three governors since 2006.

Schwarzenegger, 78, served as the state’s 38th governor and last Republican head of state from 2003 to 2011. His renaissance man biography includes a career as a body builder, highlighted by his Mr. Universe titles, action film success, political stardom and even tabloid-fodder infidelity.

Curtis, 67, a Santa Monica native, is among Hollywood’s elite and teamed with Schwarzenegger in the action blockbuster “True Lies” in 1994. Her acting career dates to 1977, and she earned a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award in 2023 for “Everything Everywhere All at Once.”

Evans, 54, is a four-time Olympic gold medal swimmer and Fullerton native who attended Placentia El Dorado High School, Stanford University and USC. She serves as chief athletic officer for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

Lewis, 64, is considered by many one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century. The track star won 10 medals, nine of them gold, in four Olympics.

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Eisler, 88, and McMillan, 74, added multiple bestsellers to this Hall of Fame class.

Eisler’s critically acclaimed “The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future” examines roughly 20,000 years of partnership between men and women and male domination over the last 5,000 years. The futurist, cultural historian and Holocaust survivor who has degrees in sociology and law from UCLA said she was informed of the honor last year by Jennifer Siebel Newsom and recently was honored by the Austrian government with its Cross of Honour for Science and Art, First Class.

“I am very honored at this time in my life to be inducted into the California Hall of Fame,” Eisler wrote in an email. “I have worked tirelessly to help create a better world, and firmly believe that a new paradigm, a new way of looking at our world and our place in it, is crucial.”

McMillan has written a series of smash hits, including a couple that became major studio films in the ‘90s, “Waiting to Exhale” and “How Stella Got her Groove Back,” centered on Black women’s voices.

Matsuhisa, 76, know for his iconic Japanese restaurant Nobu, which has six locations in California, owns businesses across five continents.

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Mariachi Reyna de Los Ángeles, founded in South El Monte, rewrote the rules of music, becoming the first all-woman mariachi ensemble that has entertained for more than three decades.

Burton, the former chair of the California Democratic Party who died last year at 92, boasted a political career that included time in the California State Assembly and Senate and the U.S. House.

“This year’s class embodies the very best of California — creativity, resilience and a spirit of community,” Siebel Newsom said in a statement. “These honorees remind us that innovation and courage flourish when people are lifted up by those around them.”

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Former NFL Players Of Iranian Descent Speak Up For Freedom From Islamic Regime

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Former NFL Players Of Iranian Descent Speak Up For Freedom From Islamic Regime

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Ali Haji-Sheikh and Shar Pourdanesh share the fact they are retired NFL players living beyond the glow of the NFL spotlight. But they also share another distinction tying them to current events: They are part of the Iranian diaspora hoping for the downfall of the Islamic revolution.

They make up part of a small group of men who played in the NFL – along with David Bakhtiari, his brother Eric Bakhtiari and T.J. Housmandzadeh – who are decedents of Iranians.

Washington Redskins kicker Ali Haji-Sheikh (6) talks to reporters at Jack Murphy Stadium during media day prior to Super Bowl XXII against the Denver Broncos. San Diego, California, on Jan. 26, 1988.(Darr Beiser/USA TODAY Sports)

Haji-Sheikh: Self-Determination For Iranians

Haji-Sheikh, 65, played in the 1980s for the New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons and Washington Redskins. He was a first-team All-Pro, made the Pro Bowl and was on the NFL All-Rookie team in 1983 for the Giants and, in his final season, won a Super Bowl XXII ring playing for the Washington Redskins and kicking six extra points in a 42-10 blowout of the Denver Broncos.

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Now, Haji-Sheikh is the general manager at a Michigan Porsche-Audi dealership and is like the rest of us: Keeping up with world events when time permits. 

Except the war the United States is currently waging against the Islamic Republic of Iran is kind of different because Haji-Sheikh’s dad emigrated from Iran to the United States in the 1950s and built a life here.

And his son would like to see freedom come to a country he’s never visited but has a kinship to.

“It’s a world event,” Haji-Sheikh said on Monday. “I am not a big fan of the Islamic revolution because I am not Islamic. I would like to see the people of Iran be able to determine their own future rather than it be determined by a few people. It would be nice to see them having a stable government where the people can actually decide how they want it to go.

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Green Bay Packers kicker Al Del Greco (10) talks with New York Giants kicker Ali Haji-Sheikh (6) on Sept. 15, 1985, at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers defeated the Giants 23-20.

Iranians Celebrating And Americans Protesting

Haji-Sheikh hasn’t taken to the streets of his native Michigan to celebrate a liberation that hasn’t fully manifested mere days after the American and Israeli bombing and elimination of the Ayatollah. 

“I’m so far removed from that,” Haji-Sheikh said. “My mom is from Michigan and of Eastern European background. My dad is from Iran. But it’s like, he hasn’t been back since I was in eighth grade, so that’s a long time ago. That was when the Shah was still in power, mid-70s, ‘74 or ’75, because if he ever went back after that he never would have left. They would have held him, so there was no intention of going back.

“But if things change he might want to go, you never know.”

Despite being removed from any activism about what is happening in Iran Haji-Sheikh is an astute observer.

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“My favorite thing I’m seeing right now on TV is the Iranians in America celebrating because there’s a chance, a glimpse, maybe a hope for freedom,” Haji-Sheikh said. “And you have these people in New York protesting. What are you protesting?”

Pourdanesh Thanks America, Israel

Pourdanesh retired from the NFL in 2000 after a seven-year career with the Redskins and Steelers. The six-foot-six and 312-pound offensive tackle was born in Tehran. He proudly tells people he was the NFL’s first Iranian-born player.

Pourdanesh is much more visible and open about his feelings about his country than others. And, bottom line, he loves that President Donald Trump is bombing the Islamic regime.

“This is a great day for all Iranians across the world,” Pourdanesh posted on his Instagram account on Saturday when the war began. “Thank you, President Trump, thank you to the nation of Israel. Thank you for everybody that has been standing up for my people, my brothers and sisters in Iran across the world. This is a great day.

“The infamous dictator is dead – the one person who has contributed to deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iranians and other people around the world, if not more. So, congratulations to my Iranian brothers and sisters. Now, go and take back the country.”

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This message was not a one-off. Pourdanesh has been posting about what has been happening in Iran since January, when people in Iran took to the streets demanding liberty and the government’s thugs began killing them, with some estimates rising to 36,500 deaths.

Offensive lineman Shar Pourdanesh (68) of the Pittsburgh Steelers blocks against defensive lineman Jevon Kearse (90) of the Tennessee Titans during a game at Three Rivers Stadium on Sept. 24, 2000, in Pittsburgh. The Titans defeated the Steelers 23-20. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)

‘Islam Does Not Represent The Iranian People’

“[The] Islamic Republic does not represent the Iranian people,” Pourdanesh said in another post. “Islam does not represent the Iranian people. For almost 50 years, the Iranian people and our country of Iran has been taken hostage by a terrorist regime, and it’s time to take that regime down.”

Pourdanesh was not available for comment on Monday. I did speak to a handful of other Iranian-Americans on Monday. They didn’t play in the NFL, but their opinions are no less valuable than those of former NFL players.

And these people, some of them participating in rallies on behalf of a free Iran, do not understand the thinking of some Americans and mainstream media.

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One complained that media that reports on reparations for black Americans based on slavery in the 1800s dismisses the Islamic takeover of the American Embassy in 1979 as an old grievance.

Another said his brother lives in England, where Prime Minister Keir Starmer immediately called the American and Israeli attacks on the Ayatollah’s regime “illegal” but, as the head of the Crown Prosecution Service took years to do the same of Muslim rape (grooming) gangs in the country.

(Starmer announced a national “statutory inquiry” in June 2025). 

Offensive lineman Shar Pourdanesh of the Washington Redskins looks on from the sideline during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Three Rivers Stadium on Sept. 7, 1997, in Pittsburgh. The Steelers defeated the Redskins 14-13. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)

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Pourdanesh Calls Out NFL Silence

And finally, Pourdanesh put the NFL on blast. He said in yet another post that during his career, the NFL asked him to honor black history, asked him to stand for women’s rights, asked him to fight for equality for those who cannot defend themselves.

“I did everything they asked, and now I ask the NFL this: Where are you now? Why haven’t we heard a single word out of the NFL? NFL, Commissioner Roger Goodell, all the NFL teams out there, all the players who say they stand for social justice, where are you now?

“Why haven’t we heard a single word out of you with regard to the people who have been killed as of today? The very values you claim to espouse are being trampled right now. Why haven’t we heard a single word?”

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