It’s not all sacks and big paychecks.
When Allison Kuch decided to share pieces of her life on social media, the wife of Raiders defensive end Isaac Rochell wanted to give her followers a raw look at the often unspoken realities of the NFL sans a glitzy filter.
“I started on social media just sharing my life about me and my husband and our journey together because so many people are like, ‘He’s in the NFL, not you,’ but his lifestyle definitely affects mine,” Kuch recently told The Post.
College sweethearts, Kuch has long been by Rochell’s side, including the moment he was selected in the seventh round out of Notre Dame in the 2017 NFL Draft. Rochell began his professional career with the Chargers before signing with the Colts in 2021. The Browns and Raiders were among his most recent stops.
During Rochell’s tenure with the Browns this season, which included stints on the practice squad and active roster, Kuch broke down the dizzying series of events in a TikTok video — one of the many she’s posted that provides insight into roster moves and the rippling effect at home.
“Being able to show people what actually happens, and I get so much feedback, people telling me, ‘Oh, I didn’t know he could just leave the team midseason,’ or, ‘I didn’t even think about how you get a six-month lease,’ or, ‘How do you cancel a lease if he gets cut,’ and all of that, so I have loved showing every single part,” said Kuch, who eloped with Rochell in December 2020 before their destination wedding in April 2021.
In one TikTok video from November, Kuch detailed why she and Rochell opted to stay in Cleveland after he was waived by the club.
“When you factor in moving, packing up your apartment, the factors are endless, so that being said, Isaac has made the decision to stay with the Cleveland Browns on their practice squad,” Kuch said in the voiceover of her video.
“It’s a moment of relief, but at the same time, it’s not, because Isaac can still get picked up by any NFL team’s active roster. However, we’re counting this as a blessing and are grateful for the opportunities that we know Isaac has ahead of him.”
Practice squad players are not part of a team’s active roster, as they typically help the 53-man squad prepare for the game ahead. At any point in time, members of the practice squad could be signed to another team’s active roster. In short, you could potentially be in one city one day and thousands of miles away the next.
As for Rochell, his next opportunity arrived in December with the Raiders after he terminated his practice squad contract with the Browns. But as Kuch explained, there’s more that goes on behind the scenes of an NFL transaction, much of which is riddled with uncertainty.
“I think people don’t see the struggle of moving around with the NFL and having to make friends,” said Kuch, who previously spoke about her experiences on the “Women of the League” web series, where she joined fellow partners of NFL players for a roundtable discussion on trades, finances and everything in between.
“Hopefully these conversations direct it into a positive direction where this sisterhood of women can be just as strong as the brotherhood in the NFL.”
With the offseason now in full swing, Kuch and Rochell won’t be straying too far from football as they are heading to Arizona for Super Bowl 2023. And while some fans fawn over the parties and starry advertisements for the big game, it’s the food that does it for Kuch.
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“So many people will say, ‘I love the commercials,’ or ‘I love seeing who is rooting for who,’ I love Super Bowl food. I love chili, hot dogs, wings — you can’t have football without wings, you can’t have wings without Bounty — and the messier the food, the more I probably like it,” said the entrepreneur, who recently teamed up with the paper towel brand.
“I won’t be able to partake in all the regular activities [by being at the game], but I’m excited because we will be at our rental property in Arizona and all of our friends will be out there, so, just the whole week of festivities.”
Among the festivities that Kuch and Rochell will be participating in is the league’s TikTok tailgate event that gets underway before the Eagles and Chiefs clash at State Farm Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 12.
