The Philadelphia Eagles are attempting to promote body positivity with a nudephoto shoot for ESPN The Magazine’s “Body Issue”.
The magazine’s annual shoot, which features professional athletes posing completely nude, includes the football team’s offensive line decided to participate as a way of celebrating the various body shapes and sizes found in football.
According to the Super Bowl LII Champions, whose job it is to protect the quarterback, they also wanted to fight the stigma of what a football player’s body should look like.
“Being an offensive lineman, obviously you're a little bit different than most athletes, so our body types are going to be drastically different,” Eagles centre Jason Kelce explained. “I think that’s one of the cool things about football - there’s a place for every kid to play, regardless of size, shape or speed.”
Lane Johnson added: “There's a whole stigma behind the O-line body, but as you can see, some of these guys are pretty well-built, strong guys. I just wanted to put that out there and see how it settles.”
In addition to Kelce and Johnson, linemen Brandon Brooks, Isaac Seumalo, and Halapoulivaati Vaitai all participated in the tailgate-themed photo shoot for the final print edition of the magazine’s "Body Issue".
While it took some convincing by Lane to do the photo shoot, the players used the opportunity to show off and discuss the body parts they are most proud of.
For Brooks, it is his core strength and strong quads, “for run blocking, taking on bull rushes, having to stop guys”, while Kelce told the magazine he is proud of his “nice butt”.
“For offensive line play, it all starts from the ground up,” Kelce said. “Being able to use your strength in your legs, your hips, it all kind of originates there.
In a video segment accompanying the shoot, Vaitai said: “My body may not be the best looking, but it does get the job done.”
As for what the players hope readers take away from the shoot, Johnson said he hopes people can “laugh and see us as a bunch of goofy guys”.
“Hopefully the pictures capture what we are really about - really authentic and genuine, nothing fake about it. What you see is what you get,” he said.
The photoshoot took place in June, with the football players stripping down for the body-positive shoot outside Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
On Wednesday, the Eagles' official Twitter account shared photos from the shoot, while asking fans not to “get any ideas”.
In addition to the Eagles players, the issue, on newsstands Friday 6 September, also features athletes including US women’s national team player Kelley O’Hara, IndyCar Series driver James Hinchcliffe, Paralympic track and field athlete Scout Bassett, and golfer Brooks Koepka.
