70°
Mecole Hardman, the Kansas City Chiefs player who made the Super Bowl LVIII-winning catch, sported his 100-carat diamond necklace made by a New Jersey jeweler popular among professional athletes in the post-game interview on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
The flashy chain made by New Milford native Al Bekdas of Labelle Jewelry in Totowa — known by his clients simply as "Al the Jeweler" — features three jets, the main one of which opens up to reveal an action figure of Hardman in the cockpit.
After making some small talk about the Feb. 11 game, Kimmel asks Hardman what his necklace is all about.
"It's a jet piece made by my jeweler 'Al the Jeweler,'" Hardman said.
Bekdas is based in Totowa and has created custom-made jewelry for countless NFL players, perhaps most famously Sauce Gardner.
He says his phone was blowing up after getting a shoutout from Hardman.
Bekdas tells Daily Voice he's known Hardman since he was in college, playing for the University of Georgia. Hardman found him on Instagram and they've been in touch ever since.
They began designing the necklace when he got traded to the NY Jets. But that's not why the necklace features the planes: It's an homage to his nickname, "The Jet."
Hardman started the season with the NY Jets before an underwhelming five games, and he was sent to the Chiefs for just a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Hardman's time with the Chiefs in 2023 was plagued by inconsistent play at times, but his hands were sure when head coach Andy Reid called his number with seconds left in overtime to bring home the winning score and another championship to the team that called his name on Draft Day.
The fifth-year receiver didn't find the end zone during the regular season, but he was in the right place at the right time when it mattered most to close out the Chiefs' season and add a third Super Bowl championship ring to his trophy case.
Bekdas said his shining moment was well-deserved.
"He’s a great guy — he loves to help people out and he hasn’t changed at all even after this Super Bowl title," the jeweler said. "He’s always been the same guy — a humble kid and very deserving. He deserves way more than this.
"He was very patient with how the year turned out for him and God rewarded him at the end."
Click here to follow Daily Voice Middletown and receive free news updates.
