New England Patriots' Julian Edelman enters the fashion world with latest collaboration: 'It's comfortable stuff'
For the past 10 years, Julian Edelman has been the New England Patriots' secret weapon on the field. But off the field, the 33-year-old wide receiver and this year's Super Bowl MVP has a passion for fashion.
"I've always been infatuated with clothes since I was a kid," he tells Yahoo Sports. As a rookie, Edelman looked to quarterback Tom Brady for style tips.
"Honestly, I didn't dress cool because I didn't have any money," he says. "He would always have a bunch of magazines — this was right before social media — he always had GQ and Esquire."
It inspired a young Edelman to stock up on fashion magazines to source style inspiration in the aughts, before the days of Instagram.
These days, the seasoned pro-athlete can add fashion designer to his resume thanks to his latest collaboration with Joe's Jeans. Edelman made his debut as a global ambassador for the Los Angeles-based brand in 2017 but is taking his partnership to new heights with this season's capsule collection inspired by his affinity for comfort and minimalism — and his closet.
"We sat down and pulled things from my collection of clothes that I wear," he says of the design process. "We made a line based on things I like to wear. And the cool thing about Joe's is that not only does it look good, but it's comfortable stuff. It's stuff that I can wear going out or going to work, going into the stadium."
The range includes three pairs of jeans, a pair of twill cargo pants, two henleys, a hoodie, denim jacket, and a bomber. Each piece represents a part of Edelman’s “outfit formula” which combines comfort, style and quality.
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Edelman x Joe’s Jeans denim jeans
"The integrity of our stuff is always very flexible and comfortable but it gives you that raw denim look which is what I wanted to capture while keeping it comfortable," he adds. "In New England, you can just throw the henley on because it's long-sleeved, with a cool pair of jeans, a boot, and a throw a jacket on because it will keep you warm enough — and that's what I do most of the time."
While his go-to outfit consists of a casual pair of tapered jeans and a henley, Edelman waxes poetic about the denim jacket he created and already has ideas for his next collection.
Julian Edelman x Joe’s Jeans denim jacket
"With the jean jacket that we did, we went to the black corduroy collar and the pocket covers, so we brought in a different texture to break it up," he explains. "It's still a traditional awesome jean jacket, which you can never go wrong with, but it also has a little flair with the corduroy which has been very popular these last few years. I want to do a black on black one next."
The finishing touch to any Edelman-approved denim ensemble is the ultimate pièce de résistance: The perfect pair of socks.
“Socks are also very important,” he muses. "I don't like to get too funky with my socks in colors. I like to keep it really earthy. Right now I am wearing the Cabela greys, which is a wool sock, and I wear the all-black ones too.”
Cabela grey socks for men
There’s an artform to pairing socks and jeans, he explains. And it goes back to his calculated outfit formula. “If I was wearing my black jeans and a black henley, I break it up with a hint of my gray sock that you can see. And then I threw on my red puffer jacket. I keep it minimalistic with a lot of things and then I have hints of pops here and there.”
As part of Edelman’s fashion partnership, he and Joe's will utilize Instagram's Checkout and Reminders features to make shopping a one-stop destination for followers.
"It's been awesome seeing all my friends on social media giving me love!" he says with a laugh. “People don't realize I put in a lot of good hours into this!”
