Now that Adele has become our nation's collective go-to artist for sadness, loss, and regret, it's easy to understand the emotions Stevie Johnson was left to grapple with on Thursday.
As the Bills wide receiver -- and free agent to be -- cleaned out his locker, Johnson was lurched into sudden reflection when a song by the British pop balladeer came on his iPod. Believing the tinge of sadness in Adele's voice to be a sign his Buffalo career could be over, Johnson did what any 21st century athlete would do: He took a picture of his locker and discussed his feelings on Twitter.
"iPod on Shuffle. Cleaning. Adele come on," Johnson tweeted. "I cant help but feel as if this is a sad story. #NotNowAdele but Could it Be?"
Johnson was the Bills' leading receiver for the second consecutive season, finishing with 76 catches for 1,004 yards and seven touchdowns, but twoexcessive celebration penalties overshadowed his accomplishments.
Does Bills coach Chan Gailey want the flag-prone receiver back?
“Yes ... and with stipulations,” he said Wednesday, according to the Bills' official site. “You love what Stevie does on the field before he scores touchdowns. So you just have to decide if he can and we can get that under control.”
It's pretty incredible to think Johnson could actually earn a ticket out of town solely because he cannot control himself after scoring touchdowns, though again, Johnson is very much a 21st century athlete. At this point, it's more surprising when a player doesn't draw a flag after scoring.
Now, that should be the subject of a really depressing Adele song.