Who Are The Football Players In The Lays Super Bowl Commercial?
While big-budget, celebrity-heavy commercials are an even more important part of the Super Bowl than actual football for a certain contingent of viewers, some brands have started debuting their ads before the big game. During the NFL playoffs, Frito-Lay did just that and premiered a Super Bowl-themed commercial titled "Taste the Victory with Frito-Lay!" that will run through 2024's Super Bowl LVIII. "Trust me on this. Lay's taste like winning the Super Bowl," says one of the spot's stars, speaking from personal experience.
Even casual NFL fans will likely recognize that this football player is Marshawn Lynch, who won the Super Bowl as a running back for the Seattle Seahawks in 2014. The man he's speaking to in this opening shot is Rob Gronkowski, a four-time Super Bowl winner with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Rounding out the ad's slate of NFL champions is Troy Polamalu, who shows up about halfway through, sitting in a barber chair, showing off his signature long, wavy hair. The former safety won the Super Bowl in 2006 and 2009 on the Pittsburgh Steelers.
When Lynch claims that Lay's chips taste like winning a world championship, Gronkowski and Polamalu are among the foremost experts on what that feels like.
All three of these NFL stars are experienced commercial actors
The three Super Bowl winners featured in this "Taste the Victory with Frito-Lay!" ad may look familiar even to viewers who don't know about their respective NFL careers thanks to each athlete's prolific advertising work.
Marshawn Lynch is a semi-frequent Frito-Lay spokesperson, previously appearing in an annual ad campaign from 2020 to 2022 revolving around football-themed parodies of the "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" poem. The 2020 edition even co-stars Rob Gronkowski. Lynch is also a film and TV actor, appearing in shows like "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" and "Westworld." He plays a key role in "Bottoms," one of 2023's funniest comedy movies.
Meanwhile, the 2024 Super Bowl spot is Gronkowski's second Frito-Lay ad, following his prior collaboration with Lynch. He's also headed campaigns for Subway, USAA, and Tide. Additionally, he starred in a FanDuel ad that can be counted among the best Super Bowl 2023 commercials. Finally, Troy Polamalu's advertising history consists almost entirely of Head & Shoulders spots highlighting his impressive hairdo.