YouTube and beauty influencer Jeffree Star is apparently dating a mystery NFL player.
Now, while it might seem like the story is coming out of left field, I do think
it's an interesting conversation about whether the NFL is evolving in a good
direction when it comes to its players and its acceptance of gay athletes.
Now, let me just be clear that we still don't know what the identity of
this athlete is.
But these images were shared by Jeffree Star, so here's an example.
Goodbye LA, time to spend time with my NFL boo in Wyoming.
Okay, so obviously you don't see his face.
And I should note Jeffree Star is a male, [LAUGH] which is why it's a gay
relationship in case you're not familiar with Jeffree Star.
Now, then later there was this image posted to social media where you
can see the back of the NFL player and- >> Can we all pause there?
Tell me that doesn't look like Tom Brady.
Okay, and we're gonna give you details on who actually it might be, okay.
But the minute I saw that, I was like, man,
they're almost trying to make him look like Tom Brady.
And that is part of the speculation.
>> Yeah. >> All right,
we'll get to what the reality is.
>> So I don't care, [LAUGH] right?
I don't care because I don't think that
this story says anything at all about the NFL.
If anything, if the NFL was accepting and tolerant towards gay athletes,
why can't we know what the identity of this individual is?
>> No, no, no.
So I hear you.
I think this story is telling in a couple of ways,
I think it's totally fascinating, but it doesn't have anything to do with the NFL.
The NFL is not the one that's like, my God, good for you, right?
No, I'm in society.
When I was growing up, there is a 0% chance, less than 0,
that any NFL player would have been like, yes, here's my boyfriend, and
this person who is a star in his own right and is flamboyant and all of these things.
No way.
And the fact that his back is to the camera shows you
were exactly halfway towards acceptance.
>> Are we? >> We've got the gay person in the shot
and he is a football player, but we don't know who he is.
I mean, it's so symbolic.
>> I don't know, maybe I'm analyzing this story
through the lens of some of the regressive policies and
proposals that have been put out by Republican lawmakers.
Both on a state level and even on a federal level, the kind of discourse that
we're hearing from Republican politicians, it feels like we're actually regressing.
So when I have that in the back of my mind,
I feel like it's informing the way I'm analyzing this particular story, right?
Because I feel like if we were in a good place, I mean,
gay marriage was legalized, I mean, over ten years ago at this point.
>> Yeah, so look, in fact over 70% of the country
believes that gay marriage should be legal.
And now I believe we're at a majority of Republicans who believe it as well.
But- >> Voters.
>> Some Republicans, voters, not politicians, but
some Republicans are so anti-LGBTQ that they've passed over six or
they've introduced over 600 laws at the state level just over the last
five years against members of the LGBTQ community, okay?
So we're in this weird situation where the country is ready to accept
people in that community, but there is such a loud minority who's like, no,
that it creates a situation where the guy still has his back turned to us.
There's no reason in the world why he shouldn't be facing forward.
But there's a second thing that it reveals too, but I'll get to that.
>> Okay, I'm gonna just quickly make a comment about your speculation.
Well, you didn't even speculate, you said it looks like Tom Brady.
>> No, no, I'm gonna get to who I think it is.
>> Okay, interesting.
He did just announce that he's gonna retire.
>> Yeah.
>> Maybe it's Tom Brady, I don't know [LAUGH]
>> Okay, so all right, let's do that and
then I'll get back to cultural points.
Number one, he left a bunch of clues as to who it is, right?
When I say he, I mean Jeffree Star.
And s, he said NFL player, his team missed the playoffs,
and Brady just made the video he missed.
Wait, no, he was in the playoffs.
>> So it's not Brady.
>> So it's already not Brady.
But the back of his head looks so much like Brady.
But she put a, sorry that I keep saying she.
>> Is the NFL similar to MLB where there's a bunch of players that you don't know
exist?
You get what I'm saying?
>> 100%.
Yeah, tons of linemen- >> Okay, so
it could be someone that's smaller.
>> Exactly. >> Yeah, okay.
>> And then here's the hilarious thing that started happening.
The other clue that Jeffree Star put in was that the player's 6' 6", so
I immediately googled.
>> This is crazy.
>> Okay, so number one, Tom Brady is 6' 4", okay?
>> Think, okay.
>> Two, his team made the playoffs.
>> All right. >> All right.
>> You keep doing that detective work, Huger.
>> No, but here's the funny part.
When I put in NFL player, the first thing Google brought up was 6' 6" gay.
[LAUGH] Okay, because 6' 6" was one, 6' 6" gay was another one, etc.
Because everyone who saw the story was like, NFL player, 6' 6", who is it, right?
And then wives of NFL players who are 6' 6" started coming out
online saying it's not my guy.
>> Yeah, no, no, I gotta.
This was a very spicy part of the story that I thought was really interesting.
So apparently, Saryn Anderson, the wife of Carolina Panthers defensive
end Henry Anderson, allegedly told Jeffree Star via direct message, quote,
I'm getting harassed because my husband is in the NFL and people think it's him.
Please stop.
Star clapped back on Twitter, My God, now the NFL wives are coming after me!
Girl, don't be so insecure.
I don't mess with married men.
But still did not reveal his new man's identity.
>> So that goes to cultural phenomenon number two.
YouTube stars, etc., influencers, man, they know what they're doing,
they know how to do a tease.
That was an awesome tease.
Now the whole country is talking about is it Tom Brady, who is it, etc., and
everybody's now, all of a sudden, talking about Jeffree Star.
Now, it's not all of a sudden,
he already had over 15 million subscribers on YouTube, so he's already big, right?
But now this is gonna put him on a whole different level.
So game recognizes game, well played.
Okay, excellent PR stunt on top of everything else, also a sign of the times.
All right, now back to the earlier sign of the times.
Kylian Mbappe, there are reports, he's the best soccer player in the world,
Messi's number two.
He's younger, etc., Messi's a legend, goat, etc., but
right now Mbappe is better.
>> What an ageist, anyway, continue.
>> Okay, so Mbappe, for a while,
seemed to have dated a transgender model.
>> Good for him.
>> And that's my point.
It was no big deal.
In the old days, if Pele or [LAUGH] Maradona or someone like that had dated
someone who was transgender, it would be the biggest news on the planet,
cuz soccer is so much larger than every other sport on the planet.
Mbappe is dating someone who's transgender, it looks like and
they've got pictures together, etc.
Everybody's like, okay, so what?
Yes, that's what we want.
>> Normalize love. >> We want so what, okay, so thank you.
All right, finally, who is it?
I would be shocked if it wasn't Carl Nassib.
Cuz Carl Nassib is the first out gay active player.
Player came out as gay after they retired,
now Nassib is an active player and is gay, and he is 6' 6", okay?
So it's very, very likely him, we'll see eventually.
But by the way, the wives keep on coming in, [LAUGH] okay?
One wife had her husband, and she was kidding around, had her husband turn
around, and the back of his head looked exactly like this guy, [LAUGH] right?
[LAUGH] We were home the whole time.
Ain't nobody going to Wyoming.
So they're having fun with it too, so that's good.