David Fleming
Publication: ESPN The Magazine
Date: October 3, 2002
The man is waiting quietly for his autumn red Lincoln Navigator to come out of the car wash. He’s standing alone in the shade, less than five miles from Arrowhead Stadium. It’s the morning after the Kansas City Chiefs’ sold-out home opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars. His black designer sunglasses hide his deep brown eyes, but the white T-shirt stretched tightly over the ripped torso and the bright red Chiefs logo on the shorts are a dead giveaway for how this guy makes his living. There are a dozen people waiting nearby for their cars, yet after 15 minutes, only one person approaches with any interest in what the hunk does or who he is. It’s the dude from the car wash, walking right at him, smelling like air freshener and twirling a damp, dirty rag in his pruney hands.
“You an athlete?” he asks.
“Yes sir, I’m Priest Holmes.”
“That what they call you, or is that your name?”
“Aw, c’mon man,” pleads someone in the customer waiting area. “That’s Priest Holmes. Priest Holmes! He gained more yards than anyone in the NFL last year.”
“Get out. You’re BS-ing me. Are you BS-ing me?”
“No, seriously,” the customer says.
“Priest Holmes, huh? Hey, nice to meet you. You did all that for the Chiefs? For real?”
“Yeah,” the customer adds. “For real.”
Holmes never says a word in his own defense. “This,” he says with a shrug when he’s back in his SUV heading to practice, “is my life.”
