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The rise of the soft jock and 10 of our favorite queer candidates

The rise of the soft jock and 10 of our favorite queer candidates

Michael Sam at the "Dancing with the Stars" Season 20 Premiere Party at the Hyde Sunset Kitchen & Cocktails on March 16, 2015 in Los Angeles, CA; Los Angeles, USA. 28th Sep, 2022, Colton Underwood arrives at Universal BROS premiere held at The Regal LA Live; Anthony Bowens at the "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" World Premiere at the TCL Chinese Theater IMAX on March 24, 2024 in Los Angeles, CA
Kathy Hutchins; Ovidiu Hrubaru/Shutterstock

Is it time for toxic masculinity to be gone forever, at last?

@andrewjstillman


Is it time for toxic masculinity to be gone forever, at last?

queer soft jock celebrities we love

Kathy Hutchins; Ovidiu Hrubaru/Shutterstock

Thanks to some of our fan-favorite celebs like Jacob Elordi and Paul Mescal, the idea of praising men's more feminine attributes with a cute little "babygirl" nickname started to gain some traction.

Outside of the realm of actors, over in the world of sports, another term that's started to catch on over the last few months is a "soft jock."

It all started back in February right before the Super Bowl when Bustle published a piece about the rise of the "soft jock," defining them as, "A new crop of athletes" who are "choosing to forgo alpha-maledom and instead embrace sensibilities their teammates might once have described as 'beta.'"

Well, we think there are more than a few queer athletes — and a few allies — who more than fit the bill. These men are rough on the exterior, but come with a heart of gold. Many of them stand proud in their queerness amidst a peer group that would, for the most part, likely not let them around the sport if it were really up to them.

Still, we love the idea of a good soft jock that you can snuggle up next to to keep you warm, so here are 10 of our favorites.

Carl Nassib

carl nassib

Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

Many of us were nothing short of shooketh when Carl Nassib became the first active NFL football player to come out as gay back in 2021. He posted the news on his Instagram account, where he also announced a donation of $100,000 to the Trevor Project. He partnered with the organization after he learned about their suicide prevention services, and if that isn't a guy you want to cuddle up with, we don't know how to help you.

Luke Prokop

luke prokop

Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

On the heels of the first active NFL player to come out is Luke Prokop, who takes the helm as the first NHL player in the same year to do so. When he did, he said, "I may be new to the community, but I am eager to learn about the strong and resilient people who came before me and paved the way so I could be more comfortable today." When he did so, USA Todayreported he was the first player to come out in NHL history, and he's continued to use his platform as a means of visibility for the LGBTQ+ population.

Michael Sam

Michael Sam

Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock

Carl Nassib may have been the first active player to come out while he was already in the NFL, but Michael Sam was the first to come out as an openly gay man in the NFL Draft back in 2014. He told ESPN during an interview that he was coming forward as openly gay, saying, "I understand how big this is. No one has done this before. And it's kind of a nervous process, but I know what I want to be... I want to be a football player in the NFL." Sadly, he was let go after his initial draft from the St. Louis Rams and wound up leaving the sport in 2015 altogether.

Ryan Russell

Ryan Russell

Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

In 2019, NFL veteran Ryan Russell came out as bisexual in an essay he wrote for ESPN. He told of a story of a gossip blogger who had threatened to out him during his time in the NFL, and feared what it may do to his career. In hindsight, though the blogger kept the story, Russell wrote, "Even though openly LGBTQ people are thriving in every area of public life -- politics, entertainment, the top corporations in America -- they are so invisible in pro sports that a gossip blogger is doing a favor for a bisexual football player by not disclosing that he happens to date men. Nobody should need a favor to live honestly. In nobody's worlds should being careful mean not being yourself. The career you choose shouldn't dictate the parts of yourself that you embrace."

Anthony Bowens

Anthony Bowens

Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock

Let's just get this out of the way, Anthony Bowens is a hottie and we were stoked when he came out as gay in 2019. Granted, he had already previously come out as bisexual, though he affirmed he didn't do so to "hide" being gay. He's predominately used his platform as a supporter of queer rights and also scored the World Championship belt during the world's biggest professional wrestling event back in 2023. Plus, he's just really pretty look at, and if there was any soft jock whose eyes we'd want to lose ourselves in, it's his.

Tom Daley

Tom Daley

Fred Duval/Shutterstock

Okay, so, Tom Daley is a bit of a babygirl-turned-soft jock for the purposes of this article, but he's just too cute not to mention. We've also gone over how he's a muscle twink, which is sort of the same thing anyway. Plus, we're totally waiting for him to join him on his boyfriend's OnlyFans, because he definitely seems to know how to treat his partners. We'd be lying if we said we didn't wonder what kind of flexibility tricks diving can bring into the bedroom, and he'd be a great person to show us how it's done.

Colton Underwood

Colton Underwood

Ovidiu Hrubaru/Shutterstock

Colton Underwood has had quite the career, from starting out as an NFL player-turned-Bachelor star, then later came out to Good Morning America's Robin Roberts and landed a Netflix show called Coming Out Colton afterward. He's lived in a bit of a fairy tale when it comes to his romances since then, and his work with mental health advocacy and desire to help other people find love is something we'll always admire about him.

Dave Bautista

Dave Bautista

Lev Radin/Shutterstock

Yes, Dave Bautista is an ally, but any wrestler who covers up a tattoo because of a homophobic friend is a soft jock if we've ever heard one. Besides that, Bautista is also the son of a lesbian, whom he honored with an Instagram post saying, "I was always proud of who my mom was because she was always proud of who she was. In your face, f*ck you if you don't like it, unapologetically loud and proud. And her son payed attention. BE LOUD, BE PROUD, BE YOU." If this doesn't prove Bautista is a real-life Guardian of the Galaxy, we don't know what will.

Travis Kelce

Travis Kelce July 18, 2018: Travis Kelce at the 2018 ESPY Awards at the Microsoft Theatre LA Live

Featureflash Photo Agency/Shutterstock

The whole "soft jock" thing on Bustle really started around Travis Kelce, who made headlines ahead of the 2024 Super Bowl more for his relationship with Taylor Swift than for what he was bringing to the game. Described in the original soft jock article as "this Herculean, traditionally typically attractive 6'5" NFL tight end" who was also "vulnerable, sweet, and adoring," especially to Swift. I mean, he made his own friendship bracelets to court her and is the epitome of what the opposite of toxic masculinity looks like both on and off the field.

Terry Crews

Terry Crews at the America's Got Talent Season 18 Live Show Red Carpet at the Hotel Dena on September 12, 2023 in Pasadena, CA

Kathy Hutchins/Shutterstock

Our final ally and soft jock is none other than Terry Crews, who's one of the most kind and loving hosts on America's Got Talent that you just want to hug. Well, hug him and watch him play around with his pec muscles at the same time, with as little clothing possible. He may have made some comments he's regretted in the past, but he's since apologized for them and we think he's deserving of some forgiveness.

30 Years of Out100Out / Advocate Magazine - Jonathan Groff and Wayne Brady

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Andrew J. Stillman

Contributing Writer for Pride.com

Andrew J. Stillman is a freelance writer and yoga instructor exploring the world. Check him out at andrewjstillman.com or follow him @andrewjstillman on all the things.

Andrew J. Stillman is a freelance writer and yoga instructor exploring the world. Check him out at andrewjstillman.com or follow him @andrewjstillman on all the things.