Teams, athletes poke fun at Daejon Love, man who posed as 49ers player, on social media

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  ESPN staffAug 31, 2026, 03:37 PM ET

Days after news broke that federal authorities charged and arrested two men -- one of which posed as a San Francisco 49ers player -- with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud, various sports organizations have poked fun at the situation. Even a member of the 49ers.

According to the U.S. Attorney's office in the District of Oregon and court documents, the FBI arrested Daejon Love and Taylor Jamie Chan on Aug. 24 in Boise, Idaho. The two defrauded more than two dozen women out of about $1.3 million.

A part of Love's alleged scheme was posing as a member of the 49ers. Authorities say he posted images and videos of himself on social media websites with 49ers gear on, acting like he was a wide receiver for the team.

When Love would meet people on dating apps and social media, he created "fictitious personas" as a 49ers wide receiver or as a wealthy real estate investor. Authorities say Love and Chan then created fictitious investments to defraud women.

The scheme came to a halt and last Monday, Love and Chan were handcuffed. Since then, the story has dominated social media, with even athletes and sports teams chiming in.

Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Daiyan Henley posted an image of himself on X, similar to one that Love shared on his Instagram, with the caption: "Believe it or not I'm in the NFL." The Chargers reposted it and wrote: "can confirm."

can confirm https://t.co/FQBcwKeoq3

— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) August 30, 2026

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward took it a step further. He used an AI-generated image of himself and Love in the Steelers' locker room. Love rocked Steelers gear as Heyward quipped on the post: "Bro... he was JUST at the facility."

49ers wide receivers coach Leonard Hankerson, who likely would have been Love's coach if he were actually on the roster, also chimed in.

Hankerson posted a collage on Instagram with the second photo being an AI-generated photo of himself and Love at a 49ers practice. In the image, Hankerson was looking at paper, seemingly coaching Love. Former 49ers wide receiver Kendrick Bourne commented on Hankerson's post: "Man I knew you was coaching him," with laughing emojis.

Even the MLB's Cleveland Guardians referenced the Love situation.

Ahead of their game last Saturday, the Guardians' lineup graphic on X included an image of Love with Guardians baseball gear. Cleveland wrote in one of the replies under the post: "Daejon is locked in."

Grind don't stop.#GuardsBall pic.twitter.com/XyEm4YAYQq

— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) August 29, 2026

San Francisco has yet to acknowledge the saga. But one thing seems apparent: There is no San Francisco jersey with "Love" on the back.