Since throwing five interceptions in his Week 11 starting debut last year, Buffalo Bills quarterback Nathan Peterman has earned pariah status among the team’s fanbase and become the butt of many NFL jokes nationally. But that has not stopped him from realizing there is much more to life than hurling the pigskin (preferably to his teammates), as we recently discovered he has his own branded merchandise store on Shopify.
Granted, we will never play in the NFL, so Peterman, whether he is on Buffalo or some other perennial also-ran, is deserving of praise for emerging from the thousands of college athletes who yearn for pro careers. However, we are not above a little ribbing of the 24-year-old, who has, in only 130 passes over the last two years, put 12 of them in his opponents’ eager hands. He will likely start against the Jets in a something-has-to-give contest between squads who have lost their last seven games combined, and no matter how he performs, his merchandise line will still be there enticing end-users to see him in his Sunday best (you have no idea how much we fought the temptation to say “worst” right there).
QB Nathan Peterman: “I love our fans. The people in this city are amazing and extremely supportive. I’m thankful to play for them.” #GoBills pic.twitter.com/omdV6m9nkS
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 4, 2018
Plenty of notable NFLers have wandered into the world of customized goods, but, well, most have had far more gridiron success than Peterman before having done so. With respect to the Buffalo signal caller, consumers of all ages can sample the wonder that is the owner of a career 32.5 passer rating. Bowing to snark one more time, we hope that babies who wear the onesie can avoid soiling the garment, as enough folks have already figuratively crapped on the second-year quarterback.
Wordplay aside, we have to give it to Peterman for entering the highly scrutinized world of branded merchandise. His time in Buffalo has subjected him to a stampede of criticism, and we can only presume that he is hoping that those who back him outnumber those who bash him. For his football and economical future, we hope he is able to pull it all together. After all, with respect to the former, we do not want to see him having to resurrect his career as a Cleveland Brown.