4t Jaguars DE Josh Hines-Allen’s eight-year-old son Wesley — who was diagnosed with leukemia the final week of the 2024 season — will be an honorary captain for today’s game vs. the Seahawks. Wesley completed his cancer treatment in August and is now in full remission. Josh Hines-Allen has dedicated this season to pediatric cancer awareness in honor of Wesley.
In the heart of Jacksonville’s TIAA Bank Field, where the roar of 67,000 fans drowns out doubt, an eight-year-old boy’s courage is set to steal the show. Wesley Hines-Allen, son of Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen, will serve as honorary captain for today’s Week 6 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks on October 12, 2025—a poignant full-circle moment after a harrowing battle with leukemia that tested the family’s unbreakable spirit. Diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL)—a rare, aggressive blood cancer—just before the final week of the 2024 season, Wesley’s journey from hospital gowns to gridiron glory embodies resilience, transforming personal pain into a beacon for pediatric cancer awareness.
The nightmare began in late December 2024, when seven-year-old Wesley spiked a fever and began bleeding from a tooth—harbingers of APL, which causes abnormal white blood cells to multiply uncontrollably in the bone marrow, leading to severe bleeding, anemia, and infections. Josh, a two-time Pro Bowl pass rusher with 53 career sacks (just two shy of the franchise record), missed the Jaguars’ season finale against the Colts—a 4-13 heartbreak—for “personal reasons,” later revealed as standing vigil at Nemours Children’s Health in Jacksonville. “The dreaded six-letter word that no parent ever wants to hear: Cancer,” Josh and his wife, Kaitlyn, shared in a raw July 2025 video, their voices cracking as they recounted seven months of chemotherapy that left Wesley battling side effects but never breaking. “As parents, we’ve held each other through tears we didn’t know we had, watching our little boy fight the biggest battle of his life,” Kaitlyn said, praising the Nemours team’s “outstanding care.”
By late August 2025, Wesley rang the bell at Nemours, marking the end of treatment and entry into full remission—a 95%+ cure rate for APL thanks to targeted chemo and non-chemo drugs developed since the 1980s. The family’s announcement, timed for positivity, coincided with Josh launching “Four One For Hope”—a season-long campaign through his Four One For All Foundation. It supports four pediatric cancer nonprofits, starting with Nemours, raising awareness and funds amid the 15,000 annual U.S. diagnoses in kids under 20. “Our goal was to wait until he got healthy,” Josh told reporters at 2025 Training Camp. “Now, we’re talking about it to uplift others.”
Today’s honor elevates Wesley’s story to stadium scale. As honorary captain, he’ll join the coin toss, a tradition for those who’ve overcome adversity, symbolizing the Hines-Allens’ dedication of the 2025 season to pediatric cancer warriors. The Jaguars, 2-3 and hungry for a home win against Seattle (3-2), wear awareness ribbons, with proceeds from a special T-shirt sale benefiting the cause. Josh, fresh off a 1.5-sack performance vs. the Colts, channels Wesley’s fight into fury: “He’s my why—every snap’s for him.”
The outpouring has been overwhelming. #WesleyStrong trended on X with 1.8 million posts, from NFL stars like Travis Kelce (“Little warrior!”) to fans sharing survival tales. Nemours reports a 25% spike in donations since July, crediting the Hines-Allens’ vulnerability. As Wesley takes the field—perhaps with a mini-Jaguars helmet—it’s a reminder: Football’s gridiron grit pales next to life’s true battles. For Josh, the $141.25 million extension he signed in 2024 feels secondary to this victory. In Duval County, where underdog stories thrive, Wesley’s the ultimate captain—proving remission isn’t just survival; it’s supremacy
