Eagles OL Was Hilariously Roped Into Lengthy Sales Pitch While Exploring New Orleans

Athletes—they're just like us!
Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata on Feb 3, 2025.
Philadelphia Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata on Feb 3, 2025. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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As a football fan, you have to love Philadelphia Eagles lineman Jordan Mailata. The 6'8", 365-pound offensive tackle is as charming as he is lethal—quoting "The Dark Knight" on the field or laughing maniacally during a huge Saquon Barkley touchdown run—and his teammates really admire him, as evident by his status as a team captain. He had a brief stint on The Masked Singer, where he was unmasked as Thingamabob, and he's a proud member of Eagles music group, The Philly Specials.

And while it's not nearly as impactful, we're going to have to add this interaction with a New Orleans shop owner to the list, if only because it demonstrates exactly why Mailata feels so relatable in the first place.

Ahead of Sunday's Super Bowl, Mailata said he was taking a walk around the Big Easy before he got caught in a lengthy sales pitch from a woman working at a skincare store. Whether or not she knew who Mailata was is unclear, but the lineman still let her go on for 30 minutes.

"I've had a couple walk abouts, especially when we first came here. Got trapped in the Lavalier store, I don't know if you know what that is. A little facial place ... right next door to here," he told reporters, per Eagles writer Eliot Shorr-Parks. "I was trapped there for about half an hour. Just trying to sell me on a couple products. And I just didn't have it in me to just get up and walk out. I told the lady, 'I'm late for dinner, you've got five minutes. That's all you got.' She was kind enough to let me leave."

Listen to that answer below:

While most us can't relate to the experience of preparing for a Super Bowl, we can relate to getting stuck in a mall kiosk listening to a salesperson drone on and on. Athletes—they're just like us!


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Brigid Kennedy
BRIGID KENNEDY

Brigid Kennedy is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, she covered political news, sporting news and culture at TheWeek.com before moving to Livingetc, an interior design magazine. She is a graduate of Syracuse University, dual majoring in television, radio and film (from the Newhouse School of Public Communications) and marketing managment (from the Whitman School of Management). Offline, she enjoys going to the movies, reading and watching the Steelers.