Jordan Burch can recall stories he would hear from his grandfather. A pastor at the local church, his granddad would open up the doors and welcome in kids of the community who did not have a family.
When Burch began to think about what initiative to highlight as part of My Cause My Cleats, the foster care system was a no-brainer.
"It came to my mind because where I'm from, there's a lot of kids who don't have a real family to go to," Burch said. "My granddad would tell us different stories of how some of them didn't have a family to go back to and they had to go to different places. It snapped in my mind that this would be a good cause."
Burch is representing the Arizona Children's Association, which according to their website, is "one of the longest serving statewide comprehensive child welfare and behavioral health not-for-profit agencies in Arizona." He learned about the organization through assistant athletic trainer Cayman Greene, whose wife works there.
Even though Burch is a rookie, he said it was important for him to take part in Arizona-based efforts early in his career.
"It's a good idea to go with something local to go with the cleats," Burch said. "People can put a face with the guy that's doing the thing locally and just being around so people can know that I'm trying to be a better person around (the community) and for the team."
Burch is one of more than 30 players on the Cardinals roster that designed cleats. The causes range from cancer awareness to mental health to wildlife care. Organizationally, Cardinals staff members will wear their own custom shoes, recognizing the Cardinals Foundation and Cardinals Climb. The Climb, which will be held on Feb. 21, 2026, at State Farm Stadium, is dedicated to raising funds and awareness for the special needs community.
With the staff involved, the Cardinals set an NFL record for most participants by a single organization in the My Cause My Cleats campaign to date.
All of the Cardinals Foundation sneakers and most of the cleats were designed by Stadium Custom Kicks. The designs will all be on display when the Cardinals host the Jaguars this weekend.
"This is definitely one of our favorite times of the year," Alex Katz, the founder of Stadium Custom Kicks said. "It's 100 percent a unique design for every single player, coach, and staff member. There's a tremendous amount of creativity and work that goes into each player, and definitely a lot of thought goes into it.
"It's a special feeling and that's a big reason why we make sure every design is special and meaningful to the players. We want to make sure that the players love them," he said.
The process of creating these cleats began in July.
Players like Paris Johnson Jr., Will Hernandez, and Trey McBride are highlighting their own foundations. For McBride, he soft launched his McBride's Bridge Foundation through some smaller events he has held. But with these cleats, the 2024 Cardinals Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee will be sharing his foundation on a much larger stage.
McBride's Bridge Foundation is dedicated towards supporting military awareness and underprivileged youth. One cleat is camouflage, while the other is colorful and spotlights the importance of curiosity.
"The youth is the future of our country, our world, so to pour into them and to give as much to the youth as you can is something that's important," McBride said. "I saw (the cleats) right after practice. They turned out great and I'm excited to rock them and show the world what that's about."
Burch's cleats are purple with colorful hand prints mixed in the Nike swoosh. Coming from Oregon, a school notorious for its uniform combinations, Burch has seen how a unique design could capture the attention of fans.
That's the purpose of My Cause My Cleats.
"A lot of times you don't want to be a blinking light," Burch said. "But when you have a cause like this, standing out is a good thing."
