Video games these days are infiltrating professional sports in a way they never have before. From NBA superstars Paul George and Karl-Anthony Towns playing Fortnite with popular Twitch streamers, to pro wrestlers like Kenny Omega and Xavier Woods playing Street Fighter V against one another, athletes have embraced their inner gamer more than ever. Philadelphia Eagles CB Jalen Mills continued this current trend with a pair of Pokemon-themed cleats, which he wore in his team's 34-13 win over the New York Giants on October 11, 2018.
Pokémon JigglyPuff and all of its evolutions @greengoblin pic.twitter.com/IiGNNUDfgA
— Kickasso (@k_obrand) October 11, 2018
The bright pink cleats, created by custom sneaker artist Kickasso, show off the popular Pokemon Jigglypuff, its Baby form Igglybuff, and its evolutions Wigglytuff. This isn't the first time Mills has shown his love of Pokemon, as the defensive back once rocked cleats with some more pink Pokemon on them:
Mills has also rocked a pair of Majin Buu cleats in the past, channeling his admiration for Dragon Ball Z (and the color pink.)
Mills has a reputation for custom cleats with some awesome designs on them. Mills has paid homage to Space Jam, high fashion, and the City of Brotherly Love itself in cleats past. Mills is also known for his self-appointed nickname, "The Green Goblin," based on the Spiderman character, due to his trademark green-tinged hair.
Mills isn't the only NFL player showing off his love for games and TV. Green Bay Packers DT Mike Daniels is a known anime and video game nerd, making an appearance as Naruto's A, the Raikage, at a comic book convention. Daniels also pointed out a bunch of other NFL anime fans in a chat with SyFy:
"I know Geno Atkins is a big anime fan, Cameron Jordan, Larry Warford, my boy Adam Gettis is a big anime fan," Daniels said. "I know Gerald McCoy watches some anime. Kevin Zeitler, who plays for the Browns, he watches quite a bit of anime. I know Dez Bryant is a big Dragon Ball fan, and Nick Perry, one of my teammates, is a really big anime fan. Me, Eddie Lacy, and Chris Banjo — they play on two different teams now — we all went to see Battle of Gods when it came out in the theaters."
Let's hope this is just the beginning of NFLers tapping into their inner gamers and we see more extraordinary custom cleats and other articles of clothing! At the very least, I'll talk about my beloved Philadelphia Eagles as much as I can on a video game site.
Need more to fill your Pokemon fix? Check out the latest news on the newest Mythical Pokemon, Meltan!
