The NFL fanbase is highly invested in the league’s sports events, mainly due to how entertaining each season has been. 

However, this isn’t the sole decisive factor: many audience members want to see certain players, some of which they even follow in their day-to-day lives. Whether it’s on TV or Instagram, football fans have been trying to stay updated on the personal experiences of their favourites ever since technology has allowed it. 

But how does this engagement matter? The answers may be in the latest CasinoBonusCA report:  

January’s Instagram Leaders from the NFL

In January, several NFL players registered impressive results on Instagram. Here are the ones that topped the ranks.

Tom Brady

The oldest football player to participate in NFL matches, Tom Brady is a 45-year-old professional athlete who has gained almost 500.000 new followers in the past five months. Despite not being the NFL player with the most Instagram fans, Tom’s account has known the fastest and most significant increase in followers in 2022. This was shown by CasinoBonusCA, a casino and bonus evaluator and gambling researcher, in their latest report. 

The growth will undoubtedly reflect his brand’s success since Brady often promotes TB12 on his account. Simultaneously, it was reported that he earns around $38000 per post, so the social media app may contribute to his income more than anticipated.  

Josh Allen

At a substantial difference, Josh Allen is 2022’s runner-up for the most followers gained on Instagram after Tom Brady. A well-reputed NFL quarterback, Josh has attracted the attention of an additional 200.000 people who now get to see every new Instagram post.

The athlete’s engagement rate was under 10% before this increase in followers, meaning that his fans weren’t involved in his online activity. 

This would explain why there’s such a significant distinction between him and Tom Brady in terms of income per post: it is estimated that Josh made somewhere between $340 and $4000 per sponsored Instagram post.   

Patrick Mahomes II

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has registered a 100,000-follower increase on his Instagram account, now exceeding five million. However, this isn’t reflected in his estimated earnings: due to a minimal engagement rate (a little over 3%), Patrick only makes between $774-$9000/post on average. 

The statistics aren’t much different from those of his peers, though. Engagement rates for NFL players rarely exceed 10%, if at all. As long as the total number of people following them is high, they can count on registering an engagement growth trend during NFL seasons. 

What makes these players so popular?

NFL players are very different from each other, so it’s difficult to tell whether any common grounds made them become this popular. 

Let’s take the examples of Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes and then see whether there are any traits that NFL fans prioritize:

• Tom Brady hit several NFL records in his career, such as most fourth-quarter comebacks, which helped him earn the respect of football fans worldwide. This is also why they nicknamed him “the GOAT” (meaning “greatest of all time”).
• Tom is involved in charity, primarily through the TB12 Foundation. The entity aims at supporting prospective athletes with programs designed particularly for underrepresented groups, such as people of colour with limited financial resources.
• Despite Tom’s records and performances, he remains grounded. His work ethic shows that he doesn’t take anything for granted, and he highlights the importance of consistent effort when meeting goals.

For Patrick Mahomes, fans find the following characteristics to be most appealing:

• Patrick had a groundbreaking NFL debut, with many accomplishments in the first few years of activity (such as winning a Super Bowl).
• Similarly to Tom Brady, Patrik Mahomes is also involved in charity. For instance, the professional raised almost two million dollars in grant money for aspiring young athletes.

Essentially, it wouldn’t be a cliche to say that excelling at what they do professionally is the main reason their popularity increases yearly. However, having a kind heart also goes a long way: the audience is interested in seeing that, despite their social status and net worth, pro-NFL players care about their less fortunate peers. 

Being empathetic and supportive of others allows fans to relate to you more, as you show that you’re aware of other living conditions besides your own.

CasinoBonusCA conclusions on NFL player popularity

The main advantage gained by NFL players once their follower numbers increase consists of profit. This is because, despite the average pay per post mentioned within this article, individual payments differ widely depending on the advertisement. 

Thus, one Instagram post can bring any player up to hundreds of thousands of dollars if the brand sponsoring it regards its audience as significant.