And just like that, Week 1 is upon us. The NFL offseason felt about as brief-lived as Tom Brady’s retirement.
OK, that analogy was admittedly low on the originality scale, but we’re hopeful this offers us carte blanche to breeze previous the aforementioned saga all through the rest of this offseason “social media scrapbook” of sorts.
After all, we have additional critical matters to talk about. You know, like Lamar Jackson revealing a bulked-up physique, Kyler Murray partaking in cryptic Instagram activity and Brady hopping on a Justin Bieber-inspired TikTok trend to address the Tuck Rule.
Because we’re on the the eve of genuine, meaningful football and it really is never ever cool to show up unprepared, right here is a refresher on some of the defining off-the-field moments considering the fact that the Los Angeles Rams hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in February.
Love is in the offseason
The point about receiving married in the offseason, is that it does make sense from a scheduling point of view. We’re going to go out on a limb and say that is almost certainly why so quite a few players — and coaches — have a tendency to do it. The 2022 offseason was no exception to the trend.
In March, Patrick Mahomes took his talents to Hawai’i to wed his longtime girlfriend, Brittany Matthews (Mahomes). Several of his Kansas City Chiefs teammates like Travis Kelce, Orlando Brown Jr., Tyrann Mathieu and Clyde Edwards-Helaire have been in attendance at the Maui ceremony.
While Mahomes’ wedding looked like an all-about very good (study: lavish) time, it was lacking the theatrics of one more higher-profile NFL wedding.
Cue Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay’s Beverly Hills nuptials. In June, the Super Bowl-winning coach joined the “I AM ATHLETE” podcast and shared that he had an unexpected attendee in the type of one particular Odell Beckham Jr.
OBJ genuinely crashed Sean McVay’s wedding 😂
(by way of @IAMATHLETEpod) pic.twitter.com/OKcyBFJRnN
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 7, 2022
In OBJ’s defense, just after assisting your coach win his initial Super Bowl title, a wedding invitation does really feel like a mere formality.
If Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt’s Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, wedding to soccer player Dani Rhodes had any wedding crashers, they’ve but to be revealed on a podcast.
What was revealed on Instagram is that the Watt brothers — Arizona Cardinals defensive finish J.J. Watt and Steelers fullback Derek Watt have been each in attendance — are not ones to shy away from colorful, coordinating beach fits.
While a lot of players have been tying the knot, Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff was receiving engaged to Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model Christen Harper.
We have a hunch McVay may be the one particular left off the guest list this time about.
Selling Sunset (and Denver)
Win the Super Bowl, obtain two homes from Drake? That’s the formula Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford adhered to anyway.
Early this year, Drake listed three side-by-side LA properties for $22.five million.
Now, two have been bought for $11 million… by Rams QB Matthew Stafford 🏠
➖ One 3600 sq ft, five BR, six BA
➖ Heated Pool
➖ BBQ Pit
➖ Pizza oven
➖ One 2400 sq ft, three BR, three BA
➖ Private horse trail pic.twitter.com/a9QLefY69u— Front Office Sports (@FOS) April 12, 2022
Stafford’s teammate, 3-time Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald, did not obtain a home from the rapper, but he did obtain a $17 million property in the exact same neighborhood as his QB — total with nine bathrooms and a film theater.
.@AaronDonald97 has purchased a $17.1 million farmhouse-style spread in Hidden Hills gated neighborhood, just minutes from the houses of fellow teammate Matthew Stafford and head coach Sean McVay. pic.twitter.com/CiZ8RWvdaE
— Sportico (@Sportico) April 27, 2022
Donald’s compound may have the slight edge on Stafford’s on account of the lighted waterfall. But Stafford does have the private horse trail going for him. … Not that we’re comparing their luxe cribs (we are).
In other genuine estate news, just after becoming traded from the Seattle Seahawks to the Denver Broncos, QB Russell Wilson and his superstar wife, Ciara, purchased a $25 million property with a basketball court and indoor pool.
Russell Wilson and Ciara have bought a $25 million mansion in Cherry Hills Village, CO 🏠
➖ 20,000 sq ft.
➖ four BR, 12 BA
➖ 9-vehicle garage
➖ Indoor pool
➖ Game area
➖ Basketball court
➖ TheaterIt’s the most-high-priced single-household property sold in Denver-region history. pic.twitter.com/2dDqS2OCac
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) April 15, 2022
At the danger of one particular-upping the aforementioned Rams players, Wilson’s property has 12 bathrooms.
From this moment forward, bathroom quantity shall be made use of as an offseason achievement metric.
Let’s ride? Let’s ride
When Wilson wasn’t busy relocating to an abode with a dozen bathrooms, he was coining the phrase of the offseason. All it took was one particular behind-the-scenes media day video of the QB in his new group uniform repeating 4 distinctive iterations of “Broncos nation, let’s ride” to set the net ablaze.
#BroncosNation , LET’S RIDE! pic.twitter.com/7rTOZ1uIhx
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) June two, 2022
From Atlanta Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson to Los Angeles Chargers WR Keenan Allen, players about the league could not resist placing their personal flavor on Wilson’s one particular-liner.
TB12 takeover
We know what you are pondering: Tom Brady desires additional exposure.
That was facetious. To place it mildly, Brady had himself a social media-heavy summer time. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ freshly unretired QB engaged in so quite a few net antics we can quickly dedicate a complete section to the seven-time Super Bowl champion and mention him unretiring only after … OK, twice.
But when TB12 wasn’t busy advertising his Brady clothes brand, er — positioning himself for post-football achievement — he had some genuinely entertaining moments on line. One of these came at the expense of his longtime rival and pal, Peyton Manning, and a great deal to the delight of his greatest adversary, Eli Manning.
Your ideal joke!! https://t.co/eWFpNY3MIx
— Eli Manning (@EliManning) June 13, 2022
In addition to chirping at other QB legends, Brady spent some time reuniting with former New England Patriots teammates Rob Gronkowski (did we mention he retired once again this offseason?), Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola on the film set of “80 for Brady.” The film, set to be released in 2023, tells the story of 4 ladies going to Super Bowl LI.
BREAKING NEWS: Nah just kidding, we did get the band back with each other to shoot 80 for Brady although. pic.twitter.com/lmiCFulwrH
— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) July 14, 2022
If Brady ought to tire of the complete Hollywood point, a video posted to social media in May has us believing the 44-year-old left-handed “hitting catcher” may be capable to return to his baseball roots.
Got some cuts in this morning. Wonder if that Expos offer you is nevertheless on the table… pic.twitter.com/uloP04RjHX
— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) May 24, 2022
Hey, stranger issues have occurred …
Namely, the time TB12 made use of a Justin Bieber-inspired TikTok trend, in which the singer prompted individuals to “inform him anything sincere,” as a way to troll Las Vegas Raiders fans about the Tuck Rule game.
It’s OK, Raiders faithful, the universe is clearly just attempting to retain you humble just after the Davante Adams trade.
Everyone retain this on the down low please. pic.twitter.com/xPtrg1kXjr
— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) May five, 2022
Rodgers’ new ink … and new appear?
We’re genuinely going to denote a player receiving a tattoo as a defining moment of the offseason? Yup.
You see, this wasn’t just any player or any ink. When Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers took to Instagram to reveal his new arm art made by Hungarian artist Balazs Bercsenyi, it sent social media into a frenzy. Fans and media pundits asked the exact same query: What does it all imply?
According to the 4-time NFL MVP, “There’s a deep and meaningful story and connection to definitely each and every element of this art piece.”
How extremely … vague.
Rodgers did add he would, “share a tiny additional about that one particular day.” But for now, we’re left to our personal self-taught astrological interpretations.
While we have been nevertheless busy mulling all that more than, Rodgers wasn’t carried out generating waves. The Green Bay star took one more danger, this time arriving to coaching camp in a appear that can only be described as Nicholas Cage chic.
The reigning MVP showed up as Nick Cage in Con Air 😭 @AaronRodgers12
(📸 @packers) pic.twitter.com/dpL709lgXp
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) July 26, 2022
The option to channel Cameron Poe, the protagonist from Cage’s 1997 action flick “Con Air,” did not go unrewarded. In the weeks that followed, the reigning MVP was greeted by a rather special present in his locker.
Aaron Rodgers does not know who sent it but there is now a bust of Nic Cage in his locker. pic.twitter.com/ko81lVPY6Y
— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) August 16, 2022
“It’s Nic Cage,” Rodgers stated of the bust just after practice. “Somebody just sent this to me yesterday with no message.”
A tasteful addition to the trophy case of any fan of the Academy Award-winning actor, no doubt.
That’s my quarterback
Almost-sort-of beef abounded in the offseason. They weren’t complete-fledged feuds, rather one particular-sided musings among wide receivers seeking to show loyalty to one particular quarterback more than one more.
Cue Carolina Panthers WR Robbie Anderson. The 29-year-old insisted he was merely “pondering out loud,” but Anderson’s practice of tweeting — and often deleting — his thoughts on group matters developed its fair share of buzz.
This rings particularly accurate as it pertains to the organization of trading for Baker Mayfield. In response to a tweet about the Panthers pursuing the former Cleveland Browns quarterback (to compete with incumbent starter Sam Darnold), Anderson replied with the comment, “Nooooo.”
When asked about his public disapproval, Anderson stated: “I stated what I stated. Just attempting to be a very good teammate to my quarterback. That’s it. Just attempting to defend the guy who is my quarterback. You fully grasp? That’s it.”
Anderson got individuals speaking once again in June with a considering the fact that deleted tweet saying, “Ain’t gone lie. Thinking about retiring.”
Spoiler alert: Anderson hasn’t retired, Mayfield was named beginning QB for the Panthers and the Carolina locker area just got a complete lot additional intriguing.
Meanwhile in Miami, Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill faced ire for his comments comparing his present quarterback, Tua Tagovailoa, to his former QB in Kansas City, Patrick Mahomes, through the debut episode of his podcast, “It Needed to Be Said.”
1:50
Tyreek Hill reveals he almost certainly would have stayed with the Chiefs if their offer you was closer to the one particular from the Dolphins.
“Obviously, like I’m gonna go with 15 as the strongest arm but as far as accuracy-sensible, I’m going with Tua all day,” Hill stated.
The reaction from the net was extreme, with Hill saying on the second episode of his podcast that he received death threats.
“We all know Patrick Mahomes is good. We know that,” Hill stated. “But, appropriate now, I’m going into a new season with a new quarterback who’s attempting to head in the exact same path as Patrick and do good issues and lead this group to a Super Bowl championship — who is also good, in my opinion. He just does not have the accolades — of but. I think in him.”
Cryptic Kyler
All is nicely that ends nicely? To the untrained eye, Kyler Murray was rewarded for his elite play on the field with a profitable contract — a 5-year extension worth $230.five million, to be precise.
To social media sleuths, the saga that preceded the Arizona Cardinals star securing the bag was as intriguing as K1’s newly minted status as one particular of the NFL’s highest-paid quarterbacks.
It all started when Murray — amid sharp criticism for his play in a NFC Wild Card loss to the eventual champion Rams — wiped his Instagram grid of any content material featuring the Cardinals. As any IG enthusiast knows, this is classic breakup behavior. The post-Pro Bowl grid cleansing paired with speculation he had unfollowed the group account on Twitter and Instagram had the rumor mill operating rampant.
Murray’s social-media-savvy teammate (study: teammate who tweets a lot) J.J. Watt could not assist but mock the drama:
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) February 12, 2022
The day just after the Super Bowl, K1 seemingly set the record straight with a message of his personal.
— Kyler Murray (@K1) February 14, 2022
While the statement was cryptic at ideal, the accompanying photo of Murray in his Cards uniform seemed promising sufficient.
Fast forward to July 21, and all was appropriate in the Red Sea. Murray’s former Oklahoma Sooners teammate and present Cardinals teammate Marquise Brown appropriately summed up the vibe.
Mood 🎊🍾 Congrats My Boy 💰 pic.twitter.com/4dhPeuPPbO
— Hollywood Brown (@Primetime_jet) July 21, 2022
Up in the fitness center, workin’ on their fitness
The year of the swoll quarterback awaits. Both Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson and New England Patriots QB Mac Jones went all-in on their fitness regimens this offseason.
Jackson gained 12-15 pounds of muscle mass as a outcome of his efforts. The unanimous 2019 NFL MVP — who stated he normally plays at among 205 and 208 pounds — now weighs 220 pounds.
“I just wanted to do it. See how I appear, see how I really feel,” Jackson stated. “And I really feel very good.”
Seattle Seahawks star DK Metcalf, who knows a point or two about strict fitness regimens, could not assist but notice Jackson’s jacked physique.
Damn cuh let me borrow a bicep https://t.co/KdUgNAIoYo
— DK Metcalf (@dkm14) July 7, 2022
Another AFC signal caller up the East Coast shared Jackson’s need to attain peak physical fitness.
“I just cleaned up my eating plan,” a slimmed-down Jones stated of his offseason conditioning function. “I’ve discovered additional this offseason than I almost certainly ever have about nutrition, sleep, wellness, all that stuff.
“At the exact same time, I need to have to be capable to preserve my weight and be capable to take hits. There’s a fine balance for each player. I’ve absolutely trimmed down on the physique fat, and I’ll get a opportunity to bulk up prior to the season begins and be capable to absorb hits.”
His efforts have not gone unnoticed. “He’s in the ideal shape of his life,” receiver Kendrick Bourne stated of the six-foot-three, 214-pound QB. “He appears genuinely very good. His stomach is gone.
“When you are a rookie, you just never know it till you go via it for a year. So he’s absolutely a lot additional in shape than he ever was, just dominating in conditioning. It’s dope to see.”
More like Lamar Jacked-son and Jacked Jones. … We’ll see ourselves out.
