Six-foot tall, 199 pounds, Ryan Longwell has rarely been accused of being the most physically intimating specimen on the Packers practice field. He's a kicker. It's his lot in life.
But things got a whole lot worse for him Friday at Ray Nitschke Field when his fellow Packers were replaced by one whopping pachyderm.
Bo, a 10,000-pound Asian elephant on tour with the Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey Circus, stopped by Nitschke Field after Friday's practice to showcase his amazing football talents, which include both kicking and throwing a football.
Although the 14-year-old Bo threw picture-perfect spirals with his trunk, his kickoffs left something to be desired, dribbling only a few feet. Still, kicker-to-kicker, Longwell saw some special teams potential for the animal-athlete dubbed the "world's smartest elephant."
"I can't imagine many guys would actually rush his kicks because they'd be scared of the implications," Longwell joked. "I'm sure the cold weather won't affect him as much as it does us, so bring him in and have a little intimidation factor. He's definitely the 11th cover guy that you want."
Bo isn't a stranger to the NFL. Two seasons ago, he flashed his skills with the pigskin during halftime of a Monday night game at Tampa Bay. However, with Bo unlikely to suit up for the Packers any time soon, Longwell said he was pleased to have had the chance to stand shoulder-to-thigh with the mighty circus star.
Jested Longwell, "For one time in my life I've seen someone who makes Frank Winters look small. Bo put him to shame."
