Andrew Whitworth is on the verge of retirement after just completing his 16th season in the NFL. He turned 40 in December and after doing so, he won a Super Bowl and was named the Walter Payton Man of the Year â a coveted award that recognizes a playerâs excellence on and off the field.
Being the oldest player on the team and one of the oldest in the NFL, thereâs quite the age gap between Whitworth and his other teammates. During an appearance on the Dan Le Batard Show, Whitworth talked about the feeling of being so much older than other players in the locker room.
âIt usually involves their social media accounts or what theyâre into that I just have no idea what theyâre talking about. Sometimes they get into conversations that I literally, itâs like theyâre speaking another language because Iâve got no idea whatâs important to them or what theyâre into,â Whitworth joked. âI just try to keep up the best I can, give a nod or a smile and act like I understand. Itâs definitely one of those things I have felt probably over the last 4-5 years â really, when I hit 35-40 here has been one of the biggest, âWhoa, OK. Now I’m 15 years, 16 years removed from what some of these kids, their era of college and what things are like.â
âAOL baby!â – Andrew Whitworth describes the vast difference in age, interests, and communication between he and his younger teammates. đ pic.twitter.com/htLbkmaYjx
— Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz (@LeBatardShow) February 23, 2022
The world has changed considerably during Whitworthâs career, which began back in 2006. Players today grew up with Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, but social media wasnât the same as it is today when Whitworth entered the NFL.
âI blow them all away with things like, âWell, we couldnât text message when I was in high school. That didnât happen until I was in college.â Or Facebook didnât come about until my rookie year in the NFL. Theyâre like, âWhat?! Facebookâs old news.â Yeah, well it didnât even exist when I was in college,â he said.
Whitworth was asked how he talked to his friends in high school, and his response was hilarious.
âAOL, baby! Hit that dial-up. âMom, dad, you on the phone? Can I dial it up real quick?ââ he said.
Whitworth still hasn’t officially announced his decision on the 2022 season yet, but if he does return, he’ll continue to fit right in in the Rams’ locker room â sort of.
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