Any football fan knows that Julian Edelmans quick moves and skilled hands have made him a coveted receiver and the target of defensive players throughout the NFL.

But you may not know that the New England Patriots man has a keen interest in technological trends and has a creative side too. Another interest of Edelmans is the burgeoning market for non-fungible tokens, or NFTs.

Later today, the 11-year veteran wide receiver will roll out three different NFT collections that combine memorable moments of his career with his passion for pop culture. A virtual auction takes place 7 P.M. EST April 1, 2021, on OpenSea, the largest NFT marketplace. There, NFT collectors and NFL enthusiasts will have the chance to bid special edition items for up to 48 hours.

Digital artistic creation has given us a platform and something we haven't seen. This is a new renaissance era of everything, Edelman said, on my call with him Wednesday. He also thinks that the worlds preoccupation with crypto and in all things digital has grown from social media. I remember being in the locker room in 2009 as one of the first guys who had Instagram, and I had (Tom) Brady walking by, saying, What are you doing on your phone, dude?

But Edelman also tips his hat to another longtime offensive player in the Patriots locker room, namely four-time All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski. Edelman calls him a trailblazer, and points to Gronkowskis own NFT auction that netted upwards of $1.2 million two weeks ago.

We saw Gronk did it, and how he jumped early. Gronk has always been super savvy in his life and digital world, with all the media he does.

Yet, Edelman says he wants to offer something of himself to fans that is much different than a commemorative poster or highlight reel of exciting plays. Edelman says he is motivated by his own lifelong passion for collectibles like comic books, trading cards and memorabilia.

When its football time, and theres post-game interviews with ESPN, theres a certain way you have to be and a certain seriousness you have to respect, Edelman said. But I wanted to also jump into this digital space to say, yeah, I will rip your heart out when it comes to football, but Im also a creative guy who likes to have fun. And that's where we started to think up some content. And this is just another evolution of thatto create cool things and communicate with people.

An NFT is a unit of data on a digital ledger called a blockchain, where each entity can represent a unique digital item such as a piece of art and sports memorabilia, as well as audio and video files, or other forms of creative work.

Edelman adds that all of the NFT items up for auction were conceptualized and designed with the help of Superdigital, a creative agency and studio founded by Assaf Swissa. Other Superdigital clients consist of well-known mega brands like Facebook, Hasbro and TV network Showtime, as well as celebrity chef Guy Fieri. Swissa says that above all, creativity is king.

Sure, it seems like everyone famous might get into the NFT game, said Swissa, pointing to the fact that entertainers like Grimes, Shawn Mendes and even Paris Hilton are unveiling their own collections. But the more that people who have large influence are making NFTs, the more we are going to see a creative cultural shift.

Swissa added that, NFTs are different than anything we have had in America in a long time, because they are going to democratize creativity.

Edelman states that his love of the storytelling and dramatic heroes historically depicted in comics sparked the Incredelman Comic Book series, one of the assets available at this evenings NFT auction.

Incredelman is a set of 1990s style motion-driven comic books, with key moments in Edelmans life and football career. The collection consists of 30 individually-numbered editions of each comic book cover, and three unique editions of an MVP Edition illustrating the story of Super Bowl LIII. Theres also the Comeback Edition illustrating Superbowl LI, and the Yalla Edition, illustrating Super Bowl XLIX, while also giving a nod to Edelmans favorite Hebrew phrase, meaning "Let's go." Ten percent of proceeds will be donated to Maccabi USA and will be earmarked to support the Israels national baseball team, which qualified for play in the Tokyo Olympics.

For those who are more into Japanese trading cardsthink Pokémontheres another NFT series available. In Edelmans Cryptomon Card Set, enthusiasts will find cards depicting three evolutions of Edelman as a squirrel character, which comes from Squirrel, one of the receivers many nicknames given by teammates. The Cryptomon collection consists of a total of 30 individually numbered editions of each card, plus three unique 1/1 holographic versions, and proceeds from that sale are being donated to Stop AAPI Hate.

When I asked Edelman and Swissa where they think NFTs or digital collectibles are going, both hinted that its a wide open space.

There are no experts in the realm of NFTs, Swissa claims. Wheres it going? Its like the Wild West and nobody knows. If anyone is fronting like theyre an expert, they are wrong. Its all evolving.

Edelman thinks that, tech and crypto elements aside, the interest in collections like his and Gronkowskis is akin to the longstanding interest in pop culture and Americana.

When I told my friends I was getting into NFTs and theyre asking what its all about, Edelman said, I said we are just making cool stuff for the internet but with a new and super creative community. Edelman is clearly excited about the new world ahead. What were seeing out there are amazing and Im hoping to learn a lot over the next few months as I roll out my own collectibles.

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Read Fryes recent interviews with Jimmy Johnson and Eli Manning.