A kiss cam clip of the Miami Dolphins great, Jason Taylor, has quickly gone viral online, with some social media users thinking that the football star had been “Coldplayed.” But what actually happened was much more innocent.
Why It Matters
In July, a jumbotron mishap went from viral spectacle to modern-day scandal. At a Coldplay concert outside of Boston, the jumbotron landed on two concertgoers who panicked and jumped out of the shot.
The moment that captured the reactions was uploaded to TikTok and quickly amassed millions of views. The pair who appeared to have been caught canoodling were quickly identified as Andy Byron, CEO of the tech firm Astronomer, and Kristin Cabot, the company’s head of Human Resources. Both of them later tendered their resignations.
Since the viral incident, the term “Coldplayed” has fast entered the lexicon and now acts as a shorthand for getting caught cheating.
What To Know
In a video shared on X by the account @PolymarketBlitz, which as of press time has been viewed over 800,000 times, the Pro Football Hall of Famer is filmed on the ESPN cameras.
In the clip, a woman who appears to be sitting on his lap is seen getting up and then moving out of the shot. The post is captioned, “Jason Taylor this is your Coldplay moment,” followed by a tombstone emoji.
Due to the similarities with the viral Coldplay jumbotron, social media users were quick to assume that something untoward was happening.
But there was a simple and innocent explanation, as the woman in the video was his wife, Monica, and just happened to be moving out of the shot as they were being filmed.
Many social media users were quick to point this out, and a community note has since been added to the post.
The ESPN announcer made no reference to Monica and instead said to viewers, “Do you see the great Jason Taylor sitting up there in the box?”
Taylor was there watching his son, Mason Taylor, who was drafted by the New York Jets earlier this year. Mason Taylor is one of three children that Jason Taylor shares with his ex-wife, Katina, who he divorced in 2015.
Taylor got engaged to Monica in 2019, and they married a year later and welcomed a child in 2021.
What People Are Saying
@RHJr15 responding to the viral post from @PolymarketBlitz in a reply viewed over 20,000 times: “that’s his wife you fools.”
@sackedbymac in a post on X: “Was that Jason Taylor’s wife sitting on his lap, or did we just get a Coldplay moment on MNF? lol.”
@Leo_PettyCrew, on X: “Did Jason Taylor just get caught in a Coldplay concert type thing? He tossed that girl when the camera came on him lol.”
@GoonOfLogic, responding to the viral post from @PolymarketBlitz in a reply viewed over 20,000 times: “Absolutely his wife, don’t slander a great like that.”
What’s Next
Given the cultural impact that the original “Coldplay” incident had, it’s likely that similar confusions over jumbotron footage could continue to play out online.
