Two charactors from Ted Lasso, the Apple TV hit, gave the NFL Draft their “football is life” message Saturday.
The actors who play Issac and Dani, two fictitious stars from AFC Richmond, announced the Miami Dolphins sixth-round pick as the NFL Draft started drifting toward the end. We’re betting Stanford’s Elijah Higgins will never forget the moment when he became a Dolphin by way of London and Ted Lasso.
Kola Bokinni, who plays Isaac, the Richmond captain, and Cristo Fernandez, who is the always-smiling Dani, announced the pick. The NFL tweeted the video, telling Higgins “football is life.” Props to the Dolphins for selecting a player who shares a last name with one of the Ted Lasso characters. We’re sure Jeremy Swift, who plays Leslie “Higs” Higgins, would’ve joined in if he’d known who Miami was talking with the 197th overall pick.
Hey @ejhiggz, football is life.@MiamiDolphins | @StanfordFball
— NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2023
: 2023 #NFLDraft on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/D3EqkrKLy4 pic.twitter.com/Xa5o4AskzT
The two actors revealed the pick live from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. They do some quick banter.
“We know a thing or two about football,” Fernandez said. Then Bokinni corrected him. “No, this is American football.”
That perplexed Fernandez, who added: “So we have no idea what we’re doing here, but we’re having a lot of fun.”
Then the Ted Lasso characters announce the NFL Draft pick as the pair provided a quick “Go Dolphins” and then a “Fins Up.” Yes, football is life whether it’s the American version or the type they play everywhere else.
It makes sense that Ted Lasso and the NFL Draft would do a mini-crossover. Let us explain. Jason Sudeikis, who plays the good-guy lead character, grew up in Overland Park, Kansas, which isn’t too far from where the NFL is conducting its draft in Kansas City. Plus, on the show, Ted grew up in Kansas and talks about his home state a ton. And, he got to London because of his motivational skills in coaching American football.
If you watch the show carefully, you’ll see that Ted Lasso gives props to Kansas City’s Arthur Bryant Barbecue. You can see photos of the BBQ spot on Lasso’s laptop.
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