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President Donald Trump pardoned five former NFL players Thursday evening.
White House pardon czar Alice Mary Johnson announced the pardons in a social media post. Joe Klecko, Nate Newton, Jamal Lewis, Travis Henry and the late Billy Cannon were granted clemency.
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President Donald Trump listens during a cabinet meeting at the White House, January 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, file)
“As football reminds us, greatness is built on courage, grace and the courage to get back up. So does our nation,” Johnson wrote in an article on X.
She said Dallas Cowboys team owner Jerry Jones shared the news “personally” with Newton, a three-time Super Bowl winner with the Cowboys.
Klecko, a former New York Jets star and Pro Football Hall of Famer, pleaded guilty to perjury when he lied to a federal grand jury investigating insurance fraud.
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The Dallas Cowboys guard Nate Newton (61) in action against the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park on November 10, 1996. (James D. Smith/USA TODAY Sports)
Newton, who was a six-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro, pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge after law enforcement discovered $10,000 in his pickup truck as well as 175 pounds of marijuana in a vehicle in a companion car driven by another man.
Lewis, who won the Super Bowl with the Baltimore Ravens, pleaded guilty to a drug case in which he used a cellphone to try to complete a drug deal shortly after his former team selected him fifth overall in the 2000 draft. He was named offensive player of the year in 2003.
Henry, who was a Pro Bowl running back who played for three teams during his seven-year NFL career, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to traffic cocaine for financing a drug ring that moved between Colorado and Montana.
Oakland Raiders tight end Billy Cannon (33) catches a pass against the Green Bay Packers during Super Bowl II at the Orange Bowl on January 14, 1968. (Tony Tomsic/USA TODAY NETWORK)
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Cannon, a star for the Houston Oilers and Oakland Raiders, admitted to forgery in the mid-1980s. He won the Heisman Trophy in 1959 while at LSU. His pardon came posthumously upon his death in 2018.
