Just a day away from the 2021 NFL Draft, presumed No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence announced he has signed an endorsement deal with crypto investment app Blockfolio.
The former Clemson quarterback reportedly received a signing bonus entirely in crypto. It’s said to be a mix of Bitcoin, Ethereum and Solana.
A spokesperson at Blockfolio revealed the signing bonus is already worth more than it was at the time of deposit last Friday. Each of the aforementioned cryptocurrencies have increased in value by at least 7% over the past week.
Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of Blockfolio’s parent company, FTX, noted that Lawrence was “excited about crypto,” which helped the two connect.
FTX has been looking to promote its business to the mainstream, recently agreeing to a 19-year naming rights deal with the home arena of the NBA’s Miami Heat. Formerly the American Airlines Arena, the $135 million deal will see it renamed to the FTX Arena until at least 2040.
Lawrence is the latest NFL player to get involved in crypto. Kansas City Chiefs tight end Sean Culkin announced this week he will convert his entire $920,000 base salary for the 2021 season into Bitcoin, becoming the first player to do so.
Carolina Panthers offensive tackle Russell Okung previously converted half of his $13 million salary into Bitcoin last season. Other NFL athletes have resorted to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which essentially are unique, digital collectibles.
Peyton and Eli Manning, Patrick Mahomes, and Rob Gronkowski have all launched NFT collections while Tom Brady launched an entire NFT platform called Autograph.
NFTs have surged in popularity this year, becoming intertwined with the sports world. NBA Top Shot remains the premier NFT trading platform while Major League Baseball and WWE have entered the market as well.
Rams respond to Cardinals’ Kliff Kinsbury’s playful jab at Sean McVay’s NFL Draft setup
The Los Angeles Rams recently revealed the luxurious Malibu headquarters will serve as the war room for head coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead in the 2021 NFL Draft.
The setup for this year’s festivities did not go unnoticed by Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, who is close friends with McVay. He was jokingly quick to point out McVay’s attempts to one-up him with a potential dip in the pool during this year’s draft.
While Kingsbury’s comments were made in jest, McVay figures to have a lot of downtime this weekend given that the Rams have just six picks and none in the first round.
