The NFL Players Girlfriend

Preseason Starts Now

"Good luck tonight babe. You're gonna be amazing and show them exactly why you deserve to be here."

It's Saturday morning. Early Saturday morning.

I'd already come to terms with the fact that I wouldn't really see Andrei today. I'm actually grateful I got as much time with him as I did. Luckily it was a home game, or I probably wouldn't even have seen him at all.

It's the first preseason game, and the boys were super pumped to finally be putting their cleats back on the field again.

Andrei was shaking this morning, a mix of nerves and excitement swirling around him.

This is his first time playing a game with the boys he's been training with the past few months. This has became immensely real to him since the moment he woke this morning.

The boys have to head to the stadium early to go over any possible last minute changes and to make sure everyone has the game plan down pat. Of course, that's liable to change at any given moment during the game, but they want, need, to make sure everyone is on the same page headed into the first snap.

I have my girls meeting me early, but definitely not this early.

"Thanks baby. You and your girls are gonna do great today. They have the best coach anyone could hope to have."

I couldn't help but smile.

I loved how Andrei never once treated my work like it was less than his was. He always complimented me the way I complimented him.

Forever thankful that I stumbled upon this man when I least expected it.

I know that phrase was a common one, but it holds so much more truth to my situation than most.

I took a job that I never would have if it hadn't been for my brother. I show up to said job and on only my second day, I bump into- quite literally, the man who I had no idea at the time would capture my heart and hold it in his hands faster than I thought imaginable.

Thankful, grateful, and blessed are the first three words that come to mind when I take the time to slow down and try looking at my life from the outside.

When the article came out of my interview the other day, Brian didn't hesitate to call me. It was my day off, and it was the crack of dawn when my phone rang.

"Michaela, why didn't you tell me?" He'd asked. "When I told you about Sierra's offer, why didn't you tell me?"

I hadn't known the answer to that until I sat down across from the interviewer, Tessa Hall, and she asked me the question.

*Interview Flashback*

"Michaela, I'm so glad you could join us." Tessa had smiled after introducing herself and we took a seat opposite each other.

"Of course. Thank you so much for having me. I'm happy to be here."

"Alright, I'm just gonna start out with some soft, feeler questions."

"Okay." I nod, crossing one leg over the other as I shift in my chair.

"It was recently made known that your brother is the quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals." She began. "Tell me; what's that's been like? Being the sister of Joe Burrow. I mean, did you ever feel any kind of pressure of being the sibling of someone as successful as him?"

I chew on my lip for a moment before responding. "Yes and no." I said. "Yes because I think it's natural to kind of compare yourself to the people around you, especially an older sibling. You know, they kind of set the bar for what is expected, but my dad was successful too. He had a good, happy, worthwhile career of his own. But, no, because I had the worlds best big brother. He made sure I never felt any of that weight. He pushed himself, and me just as hard. He kept me motivated to pursue my dreams while actively chasing his. Joey never let me feel saddled with the burden of trying to live up to his achievements."