Super Bowl Champ Celebrates Win By Helping Shelter Dogs Find Homes

The Kansas City Chiefs had a lot to celebrate on Sunday night after they defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl 31-20. And defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi decided he wanted to celebrate in his own way.

If you’re a dog lover, you’re probably going to want to run to Missouri right now. To celebrate the big win, Nnadi decided to pay off the adoption fees for more than 100 dogs so that dog lovers everywhere can give these deserving creatures a home.

That’s right, Nnadi has made every single dog at the KC Pet Project animal shelter, a non-profit shelter in Kansas City, free to adopt. That saves families an average of around $150 per dog.

“All my life I always wanted a dog,” Nnadi said. “Growing up I didn’t have a pet, my parents didn’t really allow pets.” So he didn’t wind up getting a dog until his senior year of college, and it was everything he expected it to be and more, even if he was a bit of a shyer pup—but that’s just what made his love of animals grow stronger. “When I first got him, he was very timid,” Nnadi said. “It made me think of how other animals, whether they’re owned or in a shelter, are feeling scared and alone.”

His love of dogs has only encouraged him, even more, to help make the adoption happen for local families. That’s why he initially partnered with the KC Pet Project through his own foundation during his second year in the NFL.

This season, he made it a rule that he’d pay for a dog’s adoption fee for every win his team had. 15 wins = 15 free dogs. And when the Chiefs made it to the Super Bowl, he knew he had to up the ante. So he said all of the dogs at the shelter would be free if they won. He just used it as motivation to play even harder—and man, did it work!

“I’ve never been a champion before. All the years of me playing football, that first time honestly feels like the best day of my life,” Nnadi said.

“Thanks to his incredible support, more than 100 available dogs in our care will have their adoption fees sponsored starting today,” Tori Fugate, the chief communications officer at KC Pet Project said.

If you’re looking to adopt one of the dogs, you can learn more here.

To hear more about the incredible gesture by Nnadi, check out the video below.

How sweet was it for Nnadi to make dog adoption affordable for everyone?