The Department of Homeland Security posted a video montage on social media on Sunday featuring Hall of Fame safety and Philadelphia Eagles legend Brian Dawkins’ iconic pregame walkout routine and chanting “The time has come” to himself before switching to highlights of some of his biggest hits over his nine-time Pro Bowl and five-time All-Pro career.
The video, posted to X in response to a report from Leading Report that a large migrant caravan was headed toward the United States’ Southern border, was captioned “Our time has come.”
On Monday, The Athletic’s Devon Henderson reported that the NFL has asked DHS to remove the video.
“The league has requested DHS take down the video,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said, per Henderson.
In a comment to The Athletic, DHS did not address whether it had talked to Dawkins, the Eagles, or the NFL before posting the video, instead offering a statement that read, in part, “DHS is playing lockdown defense at the border. We will use every Weapon at our disposal, from A to X, to keep Americans safe.”
Our time has come. https://t.co/Ygzy6Qfni3 pic.twitter.com/xNFNRkAaTq
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) September 27, 2026
Dawkins, a 2018 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee who spent 13 of his 16 NFL seasons with the Eagles before spending his final three years with the Denver Broncos, shared a video of his own to X on Monday clarifying that he “didn’t give permission for (his) name, image, and likeness to be used by anybody.”
I have respectfully not given permission to anyone other than those I currently do business with to use my NIL. Be Blessed! 🙏🏽
#Breath pic.twitter.com/lXOMwZGLJ3
— Brian Dawkins (@BrianDawkins) September 28, 2026
DHS did not immediately respond to a request from The Athletic for comment after the NFL asked it to remove the video, but government accounts have not been shy about posting major American sports highlight videos on X, despite most major sports leagues regularly reiterating to the public that express written consent is required to use their footage.
In March, the White House’s official X account posted cut-ups of military explosions in bombings intermixed with MLB and NFL highlights in multiple posts, going with a separate post for each sport. Neither the MLB nor the NFL commented at the time on whether they received advance notice of the posts or granted the Trump administration permission to use their highlights.
Other companies have denounced the Trump administration’s use of their intellectual property in social media posts.
“We are aware of recent social content that includes imagery associated with our brand,” Sravanthi Dev, a Pokémon spokeswoman, said in a statement after the administration posted a meme featuring its mascot, Pikachu. “We were not involved in its creation or distribution, and no permission was granted for the use of our intellectual property. Our mission is to bring the world together, and that mission is not affiliated with any political viewpoint or agenda.”
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.