Jay Feely Under Fire For Holding Gun In Prom Photo With Daughter

PHOENIX, AZ — Jay Feely says he takes gun violence "very seriously" after the former NFL kicker came under fire over a photo he posted on Twitter of him holding a gun and standing between his daughter and her prom date. Feely, who currently works at CBS as a commentator, posted the photo late Saturday evening with the caption: "Wishing my beautiful daughter and her date a great time at prom #BadBoys."

In the photo, Feely, a native of the Phoenix area, holds a gun in his right arm and holds his daughter with his left arm. His daughter's boyfriend stands next to Feely giving a wry smile to the camera. The photo is captioned "Wishing my beautiful daughter and her date a great time at prom #BadBoys."

Wishing my beautiful daughter and her date a great time at prom #BadBoys pic.twitter.com/T5JRZQYq9e
— Jay Feely (@jayfeely) April 22, 2018

The caption is an apparent reference to the wildly popular 2003 film Bad Boys II, starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith. In the film, a 15-year-old boy shows up at the door of Lawrence's character to take his daughter out on a first date. Lawrence and his police partner try to intimidate the young man, with Smith's character even pulling a gun out and waving it around.

"Have my daughter home at 10:01 [p.m.]. If she ain't home at 10:01, I'm in the car," he says during a profanity-laced tirade.

But much like the film, Feely's tweet wasn't well received.

Some accused Feely, who played for the Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, New York Giants, New York Jets, Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears, of acting insensitively given the recent spate of mass shootings and heated gun control debate.

"Let's see...Daddy poses for a photo by standing between daughter and her date, while holding a hand gun!? The clear message is what? That you own a gun? You make a strong case that MANY GUN OWNERS SHOULD NOT OWN A GUN!! Totally irresponsible," tweeted user @WeCU12.

Fellow user @ourdaily quest expressed similar sentiments: "I mean, we get the reference, but this was terribly out of touch with gun safety. And out of touch with not making that picture and night about you."

@DeliliaOMalley, who describes herself as an anti-Trump Republican, said the tweet wasn't humorous and that many children's lives were taken too soon because of guns.

"Not funny dude. There’s so many young kids who will never go to prom because of gun violence," she says.

Still others said Feely was taking it a step further, implying he owned his daughter.

"He is also apparently sending a message that he owns his daughter, and this kid better not trespass on his 'property,'" tweeted out user @Anita_Nappzz.

The backlash prompted Feely to address the photo on Sunday morning. He said the tweet was meant to be in jest and everyone involved was in on the joke.

"The prom picture I posted was obviously intended to be a joke. My Daughter has dated her boyfriend for over a year and they knew I was joking. I take gun safety seriously (the gun was not loaded and had no clip in) and I did not intend to be insensitive to that important issue," he tweeted.

The prom picture I posted was obviously intended to be a joke. My Daughter has dated her boyfriend for over a year and they knew I was joking.
I take gun safety seriously (the gun was not loaded and had no clip in) and I did not intend to be insensitive to that important issue
— Jay Feely (@jayfeely) April 22, 2018

Not every user took issue with the tweet though. Some, including those who said they support increased gun control measures, said they got the joke.

"I’m a liberal and for gun control, but Come on people! I got it, and never thought you would intentionally put your loved ones in harms way. People on both sides of all issues need to use a bit more common sense, and chill out," tweeted user @mzitner3300.

Photo credit: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock