Social media is undeniably part of everyday life, but just how deep has it soaked in to the fabric of the mainstream of the United States population? Try the fact that 68-year-old Denver Bronco’s defensive coordinator is making a name for himself with his use of Twitter.
Phillips, a former head coach of the Broncos, Buffalo Bills and Dallas Cowboys, has become somewhat of a social media darling with his various shenanigans and quotes about the platform.
Ken Stabler missed practice /no one could find him-asked where he was–"it was Veterans Day I am 10yr Vet" -Happy Vet day to Military Vets
— Wade Phillips (@sonofbum) November 11, 2015
Chicken Parm tastes so good-I like it especially with Cheese
— Wade Phillips (@sonofbum) November 2, 2015
He’s gone from having his mind blown that people actually get paid to tweet to even having a player reach out to him to get on the Broncos’ roster.
It’s that last part that has had his Twitter account blowing up in the last few months apparently. Phillips can thank the rise of safety Shiloh Keo, who went from street free agent to one of the most important players in the Broncos’ Super Bowl run thanks to a simple tweet at Phillips.
Ever since then, social media has latched on to the story and done what it does best…copycatted the story and tried to become famous for tweeting at Phillips. It clearly isn’t an original idea, and things have gotten so out of hand that Phillips has taken his struggle public with a simple message — stop “Twittering” at him.
“No. In fact, if people would quit Twittering me now to try to get on the team, I would appreciate it,” Phillips said with a smile during Monday night’s Super Bowl 50 media event, via USA Today Sports. “I’ve had tons of people saying, ‘Hey, I played in junior high and I know I can help you.”
Of course, he means to say “stop tweeting at me,” but it should be admired that someone of his age is able to navigate the world of Twitter enough to know what the heck the technology is even about.
As for Keo’s ability to use Twitter to get a job? That narrative is a bit overblown, as he did play for the Houston Texans with Phillips as the defensive coordinator there from 2011 to 2013. It just turns out that Keo had no other means of contact to let him know he could help solve the Broncos’ needs with a completely banged up secondary.
If Phillips thinks things are bad now, just wait to see what happens should Keo play a big role in Super Bowl 50. He may just have to give up the social media stuff all together.
