Sunday, February 11, 2024

SUPER BOWL SUNDAY & Rolex



Rolex and the NFL (National Football League) have a great deal in common, as their highly iconic histories have intersected for over a century, and they both represent superlative principles coupled with a timeless appeal and perpetual drive for excellence. You can kind of think of this article as Jake's Rolex World's Hall of Fame for Football as I attempt to encompass and chronicle this fascinating history... 

Precision timing is EVERYTHING in Football—as it is in life. Rolex watches and American Football share many characteristics including the fact they are big, bold, burly, classic, tribal, universally loved and completely alpha...

It's that time of the year again—time for Super Bowl Sunday, so let's hop in the Rolex Time Machine and go back to take a look at some of the greatest coaches and players in NFL history—all wearing their trusted Rolex watches. 


1983 Rolex "Orange Hand" Explorer II [Reference 1655] Football Magazine AD




SUPER BOWL SUNDAY

SBLVIII


This years Super Bowl LVIII was played in Las Vegas, Nevada at Allegiant Stadium between the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs.

The game went into overtime and the Kansas City Chiefs not only won this year, but also won last year. It's also the third Super Bowl the Kansas City Chiefs won in the last five years. 




Patrick Mahomes
Kansas City Chiefs
Rolex Fanatic

Patrick Mahomes is the lead quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs, and not only won Super Bowl LVIII this evening, but has formerly been a Super Bowl Champion twice (LIV, LVII). He was also the MVP for both of those Super Bowls.

Today's Super Bowl represents his 4th appearance in the past 5 Super Bowls and in Patrick Mahoney words "Is the start of a football dynasty!!!" Despite being only 28 years old, Patrick has excellent taste coupled with a huge Rolex collection that contains many, many Rolex models. 


In the photo above we see Patrick Mahomes rocking his Everose Yacht-Master on an OysterFlex bracelet.


In the photo below we see Patrick Mahomes rocking his yellow gold rainbow Daytona.


In the image below we see Patrick Mahomes rocking his BLNR Rolex GMT-Master, which is just one of many Rolex watches he owns and wears. From what I can tell, Patrick seems to own and wear just about every Rolex model made.


Patrick Mahomes, is a huge Rolex fan and has an amazing Rolex harem of watches which our Captain Danny chronicled back in 2021.



Travis Kelce
Best Tight End Ever

"When a man has a world in his hands, you expect to find a Rolex on his wrist."

Kansas City Chiefs visited the White House in June of 2023 to celebrate winning Super Bowl LVII, and notice both Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce are ironically wearing Rolex Day-Date models on Rolex President bracelets with President Biden, who wears a Rolex Datejust.


What do NFL Champions who earned a Super Bowl Championship ring have in common with Rolex watches? They both represent timeless iconic international marks of success and achievement!

Kansas City Chiefs NFL Champions, Travis Kelce & Patrick Mahomes

 both rock Rolex watches and Super Bowl Championship Rings

Travis Kelce is the tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, and not only does he have excellent taste in Rolex watches as witnessed by the yellow gold Rolex Day-Date he is wearing in the photo above with Patrick Mahomes, but he is also dating the gorgeously talented singer, Taylor Swift, and his crowning achievement of Super Bowl may have been the kiss he told after having won the Super Bowl!!!!




Brock Purdy
San Francisco 49ers Quarterback
Tudor Black Bay Burgundy METAS

Hodinkee spotted San Francisco 49ers Quarterback, Brock Purdy rocking a Tudor Black Bay Burgundy METAS on a matching Tudor Jubilee bracelet as he walked into the Super Bowl. The photo below taken by Steph Chambers/Getty Images of Brock Purdy appeared in the Hodinkee article and shows Purdy looking like a super stylish boss rocking his red and gold gilt dial Tudor.



The super cool aspect of Brock Purdy's Tudor Black Bay Burgundy is how it totally matches the 49ers logo color way as seen above. 


I have an interesting personal observation. I remember when I was a child, my father Jake Ehrlich Jr., was an NFL football fanatic. I mean he LOVED watching football, and with my uncle Harry, the two of them would drink Coors beer, and watch Monday night football, and scream at the TV set for a couple of hours, then retreat back into the more silent world of their families.



I remember how when I was a kid, how professional football players looked so old to me. Then when I got older, they were suddenly the same age I was. Today, it trips me out as I could not help but notice that both quarterbacks playing in the Super Bowl are each less than half my age!?!! I don't mean to belittle them in any way, but they look like little kids throwing around the football to me. —Such is life :-0





Super Bowl Commercials

Many people watch the Super Bowl just for the awesome commercials and below you can get a detailed preview of some of the best 2024 Super Bowl Commercial Teasers including this first one that includes Rolex Coolness and the greatest quarterback in history, Tom Brady rocking his stainless steel Rolex Submariner in a commercial for MGM:



Next up we see Rolex Hotness, Jennifer Aniston rocking her trademark yellow gold Rolex Day-Date:




HONORING LAMAR HUNT
Kansas City Chiefs Owner, Sports Legend, League Founder
Meet the man who coined the term 'Super Bowl'


The late Lamar Hunt was mentioned numerous times during Super Bowl LVII & LV and during America's biggest game of the year, as the team he founded played at the Super Bowl LVII for just the third time in 50 years. 


Lamar Hunt is America’s super sixties’ serial sports franchiser and league founder. Raised in Texas, he turned down his dad's offer to join him in the highly lucrative oil business and got into sports instead. He would launch the American Football League, the World Championship Tennis, the North American Soccer League, the Chicago Bulls and the Kansas City Chiefs. 


The Man Who Coined the Term "Super Bowl" 

In 1966, Lamar Hunt was negotiating an AFL-NFL merger with then NFL commissioner, Pete Rozelle. Rozelle and Hunt agreed that the victors in each league would play each other. 

At one point Hunt said, "No, not those games—the one I mean is the final game. You know, the Super Bowl." He said it probably registered in his head because his daughter, Sharron, and his son, Lamar Jr., had a children’s toy called a Super Ball. 

"And I probably interchanged the phonetics of 'bowl' and 'ball,'" —he would later recount.


Above, a 1979 Rolex ad featuring Lamar Hunt's Day-Date in yellow gold. 


In July 1966, Lamar Hunt wrote to Rozelle, "I have kiddingly called it the 'Super Bowl,' which obviously can be improved upon." Later on, Hunt proposed adding the Roman Numerals to give the games "more dignity."




Lamar Hunt passed away in 2006 at the age of 74. His team, the Kansas City Chiefs finally made it to the Super Bowl in 2020 and retuned in 2021. He would be proud.

Troy Aikmanthe former quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, Pro Football Hall of Famer and MVP with three Super Bowl victoriespaid tribute to Lamar Hunt on Instagram several years ago:



Lamar Hunt Jr. followed in his dad's footsteps also works in the sports business. He owns Kansas City's professional hockey team, the Mavericks. With a Rolex on his wrist.



Jim Nantz
The Voice of The Super Bowl
ROLEX Datejust

American sportscaster Jim Nantz, is considered to be the modern voice of  Super Bowl commentating and will be the lead commentator this year at the 2024 Super Bowl and as we see he wears a yellow gold Rolex Datejust.




TOM LANDRY
DALLAS COWBOYS COACH
ROLEX DAY-DATE

I believe Tom Landry was the first NFL coach to wear a Rolex Day-Date, which set a tradition for future NFL coaches, and his Rolex Day-Date sold recently at Sotheby's auction house for $88,900


Tom Landry (pictured above and below) began his professional athletic career as a football player for the New York Yankees in 1949. From 1950 to 1955 he played for the New York Giants. He became a coach for the Giants and seven with them from 1954-1959. He then went on to become the head coach of his beloved Dallas Cowboys from 1960 to 1988. Tom Landry was best know for his trademark Fedora, and Rolex Day-Date...

Tom Landry won two Super Bowl titles  (VI, XII), as well as five NFC titles, and 13 Divisional titles. He is record makes him the third-winningest coach in Football with a 270-178-6 record. From 1966 to 1885 he had 20 consecutive winning seasons. 





Tom Landry is pictured below with fellow Green Bay Packers football coaching legend, Vincent Lombardi.





Jimmy Johnson
DALLAS COWBOYS COACH
ROLEX DAY-DATE
Since we are on the subject of Dallas Cowboy coaching, I thought I would point out that one of Tom Landry's successors also wears a yellow gold Rolex Day-Date, and that is Jimmy Johnson.


Jimmy Johnson won the Super Bowl twice, just like Tom Landry did. Johnson won Super Bowl XXVII and XXVIII. In the photos above and below we see Dallas Cowboys Head Coach (1989-1993), Jimmy Johnson wearing his yellow gold Rolex Day-Date. 

For some reason, in Texas some people refer to Rolex watches as a TEXAS TIMEX, since Rolex watches are so commonly worn in Texas.


Jimmy Johnson is pictured below with Dallas Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones.




Don Shula
Miami Dolphins Head Coach
ROLEX DAY-DATE 
Don Shula is best known as the head coach for the Miami Dolphins from 1970 to 1995, which he lead to two Super Bowl victories. 


He is also the ONLY coach in NFL history to have a perfect season. He was also the Head Coach for for the Baltimore Colts from 1963 to 1969. During his career he led his teams to six Super Bowls...



In the photo below we see Don Shula with former Miami Dolphins Quarterback Bob Griese waving to a crowd and notice the are both wearing Rolex Day-Date models on President Bracelets...This photo was taken on December 16, 2007 which was the 35th anniversary of their 1972 undefeated season, and this image appears courtesy of J. Pat Carter.


The photo below from Super Bowl VII shows quarterback Bob Griese passing against the Washington Redskins at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Some consider Griese to be the greatest quarterback in history as he is the only one to have an undefeated season...





Bill Walsh
49ERS Head Coach
ROLEX DAY-DATE OYSTER QUARTZ

Bill Walsh is considered to be one of the best NFL Head Coaches in history with an amazing career achievement with the 49ers of 102-63-1. H won 10 of his postseason games along with 6 division titles, along with three NFC Championship tiles. He also won the Super Bowl three times with the 49ers, in 1981, 1984 and 1988.






Bill Walsh is pictured below with 49ers Quarterback, Joe Montana, and 49ers owner, Eddie DeBartola Jr. holding the Super Bowl Trophy on January 20, 1985 when the 49ers prevailed over the Miami Dolphins.

Speaking of prevailing, one of the funniest things I have heard was somebody sarcastically say:

    "Hurray, the sports franchise located close to my physical location emerged victorious against one further away from me!" ;-)








Mike Ditka
DA BEARS, DA BULLS

Mike Ditka is another famous NFL coach. In the photo below we see Mike Ditka when he was an assistant coach for the Dallas Cowboys, where he served under the legendary Tom Landry.



ROLEX TRIDOR DAY-DATE

In the photo below we see Mike Ditka wearing a Rolex Tridor Day-Date. The Rolex Tridor looked like a two-tone Datejust had a baby with a Rolex Day-Date. Mike Ditka was the Head Coach for the Bears when they won Super Bowl XX.


The photo below shows Bill Walsh giving Mike Ditka a congratulatory hug after winning against the 49ers on October 13, 1985, at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

In the next three photos, we see the legendary football player, Walter Payton in photos from Sports Illustrated. In this first photo, Payton is shaking hands with Mike Ditka on August 22, 1997, in Chicago. Ditka had coached Payton when he played for the Chicago Bears.


Walter Payton is pictured below on May 8, 1984, next to Chicago Bears President Mike McCaskey at a press conference where Walter Payton signed a contract extension for 3 years to continue playing with the Bears. 

In 1984 before signing the extension contract he had rushed for an amazing career high of 1,684 yards. Notice Walter Payton is wearing his yellow gold Rolex Day-Date in the photo below.


Super Bowl Champion Walter Payton was a running back for the Chicago Bears where he spent his entire career from 1975 to 1987. His nickname was Sweetness as he was such an amazing rusher. Mike Ditka said that Payton was the greatest football player he had ever seen but was an even greater human being. Payton rushed for a total career record of 16,726 yards.





John Madden
Oakland Raider Coach
Yellow Gold Rolex Day-Date

John Madden was the head coach for the Oakland Raiders from 1969 to 1978, where he coached them to win the Super Bowl. 



John Madden had an aversion to flying on airplanes so he had a decked out custom bus. The Sports Illustrated photo below from 1990 shows John Madden traveling on his bus from Oakland to Manhattan, which took 55 hours and covered 3,016 miles. Notice Madden is wearing his yellow gold Rolex Day-Date.


John Madden is perhaps best known for his career as an NFL broadcaster, where he was an analyst for all four major TV networks including CBS (1979-1993), Fox (1994-2001), ABC (2002-2005), and NBC (2006-2009).

In the photo below we see John Madden with his co anouncer Pat Summerall, while Madden was with CBS, and notice they are both wearing Rolex watches. Summerall is wearing a two-tone Rolex Datejust and Madden is wearing his yellow gold Rolex Day-Date.






Tom Coughlin
2012 Super Bowl Winning Coach
Stainless Steel Submariner

Next up we see New York Giants Head Coach, Tom Coughlin holding up the 2012 Super Bowl XLVI trophy, and we get a clear shot of his Rolex Submariner. He won the Super Bowl with Giants twice, with XLII and XLVI.


The photos of New York Giants Head Coach, Tom Coughlin show him holding up the Vince Lombardi Super Bowl Trophy.






Rex Ryan
New York Jets Coach
Stainless Steel Submariner

Next up we see New York Jets Head Coach, Rex Ryan who appears on the cover of September 12, 2010, New York Times Magazine, wearing his Rolex Datejust.







Joe Namath
New York Jets
Super Bowl Champion (III)

Joe Namath is considered to be one of the great NFL quarterbacks and he won not only won Super Bowl III on January 12, 1969, but was also the MVP. Joe Namath wears a two tone Rolex Datejust on a Jubilee bracelet as seen below.









Troy Aikman
Dallas Cowboy's Quarterback
3 Times Super Bowl Champion


Troy Aikman is retired from the NFL and works for Fox Sports. He commented live for Super Bowl LIV several years ago with a Rolex Daytona on his wrist.


Troy Aikman is considered to be one of the great quarterbacks in NFL History as he won three Super Bowls in 1992, 1993 and 1995.










Mark Sanchez
Ceramic LV Submariner
Cover of GQ Magazine, August 2011

I am including the cover of GQ Magazine photo of Mark Sanchez rocking his LV Submariner as it's one of the coolest images of an NFL Quarterback wearing a Rolex. Mark Sanchez began his NFL career in 2009, when he played for the New York Jets, then went on to play for the Philadelphia Eagles (2014-2015), Denver Broncos and Dallas Cowboys (2016), Chicago Bears (2017) and ended his career with the Washington Redskins (2018).




Michael Strahan

A Brilliant Career 
With Rolex Keeping His Time

Michael Strahan is one of the coolest dudes who has ever worn a Rolex. Strahan began his career as a defensive end in the NFL and holds the record for the most sacks in a season (2001), when he played for the New York Giants and helped take them to the Super Bowl that same year. 


Strahan played for the Giants for 14 years, from 1993 to 2007. The photo below was taken just after Strahan broke the record for most sacks in a season. Strahan is a Rolex fanatic and wears many, many different Rolex models.




Tom Brady

The Greatest Quarterback In History


Tom Brady wins 2019 Superbowl. Image appears courtesy of Getty Images Ronald Martinez 



Six Time Super Bowl Winner!!!!!!

In the 2019 Super Bowl Tom Brady stepped into history to become the first quarterback in history to shatter the record to win 6 Super Bowls. Keep in mind this was after he set the all time record to become the first quarterback to win 5 Super Bowls. This is likely a record that will NEVER be broken again by anybody, expect perhaps Tom Brady himself.


Pictured above we see Tom Brady in Super-bowl 50. It was the first Super Bowl in 50 years of history that went into overtime, and in the most dramatic fashion, the New England Patriots pulled off what could easily be called a miracle. 



Rolex Day-Date
Tom Brady is pictured below wearing his Rolex Day-Date on a President Bracelet.




Rolex Milgauss

Tom Brady is pictured below wearing his 50th Anniversary GV Rolex Milgauss, which has the classic green sapphire crystal and orange lighting-bolt hand.




In the photos above Tom Brady is wearing his 50th Anniversary GV Rolex Milgauss on a Rolex Oyster Bracelet, and in the photo below from a GQ photo shoot, he is wearing his Milgauss on a black alligator strap.


The photo below is of a 50th Anniversary Rolex Milgauss which is the same model Tom Brady is wearing in the photos above. It is an unusual looking watch in the sense it has a bright Kelly green sapphire crystal coupled with an orange lightning bolt second hand.






Rolex Daytona

John Player Special







Rolex Emoji
All You Need Is Love
Winningest NFL Superbowl Quarterback, Tom Brady 
rocking his Rolex Day-Date with Emoji Love Puzzle Dial

The Rolex 'Emoji' LOVE Day-Date was introduced at Watches And Wonders back in April of 2023, and is one of the most coveted and popular modern Rolex watches. Tom Brady is wearing the Everose Model in the photo pictured above.





Tom Brady was married to Brazilian super-leggy-model Gisele Bündchen, and they are pictured below together.