Adding unique spice to team
With LB Kasim Edebali
He plays outside linebacker for the Broncos. But you’re just as likely to find Kasim Edebali wearing disco pants and a fake afro as he glides through a skating rink. Edebali, in his first season with the Broncos after spending the first three years of his NFL career with the New Orleans Saints, likes to have fun away from the football field. He occasionally films goofy videos that star himself in various costumes, and he shares the productions with his followers on his Instagram page, @edeballa. Edebali, who smiles so much you’d think the grin was sewn to his face, has brought a unique flair to the locker room, pulling experiences from his native Hamburg, where he developed a love for football watching NFL Europe games.
Q: Oktoberfest is coming up in Denver, but it’s the real deal in Germany. Have you experienced it there?
A: Actually, I’ve never been. Oktoberfest is in Munich, and it’s all the way in the south. It’s like an eightor nine-hour car ride. I’ve never been.
Q: From friends who have gone, how is Oktoberfest viewed there?
A: Man, it’s just the mecca of beer and pretzels. You want to have a good time with your boys, you go down there.
Q: What were your favorite foods growing up?
A: My grandpa is Turkish, so my grandma made a lot of Middle Eastern dishes, too. The traditional German dish would be fried pork, Wiener schnitzel and just potatoes. That’s the German food I think about.
Q: Have you found places in Denver where you can get some of that?
A: Not really, but my lovely wife at home, she’s cooking it up, chef-ing it up, and I have no complaints whatsoever.
Q: You and she got married this offseason. Turks and Caicos, right?
A: It was pretty awesome. Those who don’t know Turks and Caicos, it’s a small island (near) the Bahamas. We had a beautiful house. The beach was right there. There was turquoise water. It was a great time.
Q: A lot of people enjoy these characters you make on Instagram. How did that get started?
A: It really started with just a lot of free time in college. I’d have no class or practice, and I’d just start filming some funny stuff I’d be thinking about. There’s a funny one I have planned coming in a month or two. But, yeah, every time I have a funny idea, I just think about how I can make it funnier. And then I just post it.
Q: Do you have anyone who helps film them?
A: Whoever is there. For the one, I was on my skates — check it out, everybody — at a skate rink. I asked this 12-year-old dude, “Hey, can you film me?” He’s like, “Who’s this guy?” I’m like, “I’m a linebacker for the Broncos.” He was like, “What?!” I said, “Yeah, if you film it, we can take some pictures.” He was like, “All right, I’ve got you!” It was funny.
Q: I saw one where you kicked somebody into a pit like the movie “300”?
A: Yeah, it was like in a bouncy house. I saw everyone falling into this (foam) pit, and I was like, “You know what? I’ve seen this before. Let’s do this scene.” So we just did the “300” scene right there.
Q: I’ve heard you talk about watching NFL Europe a lot growing up. Did you have a favorite player?
A: Uh, I had a favorite team. It was the Hamburg Sea Devils, who were in my town. Scott Mccready was his name. He was a receiver for the Sea Devils. He helped me out, came to practices sometimes (for Edebali’s youth team, the Hamburg Huskies). It’s crazy thinking about NFL Europe, and now I’m all the way over here.