NFL First-Round Draft Pick Eli Apple Does Not Wear a Rolex

The style section of this blog is usually reserved for photos of celebrities wearing Rolex watches. However, a few weeks ago Annie Apple, mother of Giants first-round draft pick Eli Apple, made headlines for not allowing her son wear a borrowed Rolex to the 2016 NFL Draft held on April 28, 2016 in Chicago.

Eli Apple, Giants 2016 First-Round Draft Pick (photo: CBS Sports)

Annie Apple was subsequently interviewed by several media outlets and stated that she didn't want her son, who at the time was an unemployed college dropout, to misrepresent himself to the world by wearing Rolex watches and diamonds that were not his. Instead, she bought him a charger for his smartphone so that he could check the time on draft day on there instead.

While celebrity endorsements are the primary form of marketing used by luxury watchmakers today, it is important to make the distinction between a paid celebrity brand ambassador and someone borrowing luxury items from jewelers to walk red carpets that will be covered by the international press. It is also important for people to see that owning a Rolex is something to work toward.

While Apple is certainly in a position to own a luxury watch soon in his new role as a cornerback in the National Football League, his mother helped him inform the public of the distinction between owning a Rolex and posing for a photo with a Rolex on your wrist.

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