FOOD NEWS
The Questionable KFC Commercial That Got An NFL Player In Hot Water
By Stacie Adams
Brands pay big money to advertise their wares during NFL games, but a recent KFC ad featuring Minnesota Vikings' quarterback Kirk Cousins backfired on the fast food chain.
In the ad, Cousins says that NFL quarterbacks are prone to licking their fingers because of the "little extra flavor" that "makes the wide receivers work harder for the ball."
As Cousins makes this statement, he's seen snacking on a bucket of KFC chicken, which the viewer is led to believe is presumably the source of said "flavor."
Fried chicken is involved in a well-known racist trope made popular in the early 1900s when it was featured in the "Birth of a Nation," a film derided due to its racist content.
It's also important to consider that the majority of NFL players are predominantly black and the wide receiver position is often filled by black players.
The commercial seems to be implying that wide receivers work harder for a taste of fried chicken. As stated by a commenter on YouTube, "What were they thinking?"
The alleged racist connotations are most prevalent, so much so that one YouTube commenter claimed that the commercial had been altered on subsequent airings.