Getty Bills safety Jordan Poyer #21 runs a drill before a preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts at Highmark Stadium on August 13, 2022.
Buffalo Bills safety Jordan Poyer is speaking out after a backlash over his charity golf event led him to cancel it.
Poyer had panned to hold his Celebrity Open golf tournament in July at the Blue Monster at Trump National Doral Miami, a course owned by former President Donald Trump’s company. After Poyer received criticism and the event’s beneficiary decided to pull out, he took to Instagram on June 24 to announce that it was canceled.
Poyer expressed regret over the turn of events while offering some criticism of politics in New York state versus his now-home state of Florida.
Jordan Poyer Explains Cancellation
The Bills safety noted that a number of people complained to the Erie County Medical Center, which had been the beneficiary of his tournament’s earnings. Poyer said the pressure campaign worked, and ECMC decided it would not partner with Poyer’s charity effort.
“ECMC decided they can no longer take the pressure from up top, from the people above them and it probably has nothing to do with ECMC at all,” he said.
As the Buffalo News noted, Poyer had received criticism almost immediately after the event had been announced. Poyer, who lives in Miami during the offseason, said the course was one of his favorites in the area.
But in canceling the event, Poyer noted that politics were at play. Many fans had criticized his decision to play at a course owned by the former president, with several pointing to his role in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol building.
“I’m not naïve. I understand where they are on the political spectrum, where New York is on the political spectrum,” he said. “Do I agree with a lot of it? No, I don’t. I’m sorry, but I don’t. … I say the quiet part out loud a lot and some of you don’t like that. My bad. I still went and put my ego aside and went to go help those who needed help or needed a laugh.”
“I’d be lying if I said we weren’t extremely disappointed,” Poyer wrote on Instagram. “This country needs to change.
Poyer also offered an apology to the celebrities and athletes who planned to take part in the tournament, but vowed to continue his charitable efforts.
“Am I stressed about it? Not even the slightest bit,” he said. “Am I upset about it? A little, but I’m not even upset about the tournament being canceled. I’m upset about this is where we are in America.”
Jordan Poyer’s Return to Buffalo
While he expressed disappointment in some fans and took aim at the politics in New York in his statement, Poyer has also shown some love for the Bills fans and noted that their support was a major factor in his decision to return to the team. Poyer had been expected to leave in free agency this offseason, but instead re-signed on a two-year deal.
Poyer said that after some deep contemplation, he decided that coming back to Buffalo was what he wanted the most.
“It was one of the things my wife was telling me, ‘What is going to make Jordan Poyer happy? Because whatever makes you happy, will make everyone else around you happy.’ And so being here was going to make me happy,” Poyer told reporters in March.