Getty Former New York Jets wide receiver Robbie Anderson with the Arizona Cardinals in 2022.
Former New York Jets wide receiver Robbie Anderson is in the news again.
This time, he’s announced that he has legally changed his first name, and the new identity he’s decided to go with is both unique and bizarre. “Robbie Anderson has legally changed his name to Chosen Anderson,” a fan relayed on Twitter after the wideout first announced the alteration on his Instagram account.
Robbie Anderson has legally changed his name to Chosen Anderson..😳
The fan included screenshots of Anderson’s new Instagram bio and his post, which included a text conversation from an account that appeared to be a legal counselor or representative. The current Arizona Cardinals WR captioned the post: “🙏🙏 WITH GOD 1st Stay Righteous Heart Pure & Genuine I Will Always Prevail Stay Wise And Focused On My Purpose 🙏.”
NFL Fans React to Robbie Anderson’s Name Change to Chosen
Anderson’s Instagram comments seemed to be limited to just friends and users he follows, but NFL fans did respond to the Twitter screenshots from “(Alex) Clouts.”
“Chosen to be mid🔥🔥💪💪💪💪🔥🔥,” a fan with a Sauce Gardner profile picture joked disparagingly.
Another insulting reply read: “bro is not him.” While a third fan simply stated: “Yikes.”
The most accurate reaction may have been this Star Wars GIF below, although one final fan went as far to reply, “what a loser, LMFAO.”
For those who can’t view the GIF, it’s the scene from “Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith,” where Obi-Wan Kenobi yells — “You were the chosen one!” — at Anakin Skywalker. We see what you did there!
Jets Made the Right Move Letting ‘Chosen’ Robbie Anderson Walk in Free Agency
After entering the NFL as an undrafted breakout playmaker with the Jets in 2016, Anderson quickly became their top passing option during his second campaign with the franchise. At the time, his future looked very bright, but things changed as the wideout’s off-the-field personality began to cause some concerns.
Anderson was arrested twice — headlined by a single misdemeanor count of reckless driving in 2018 and a separate count of resisting arrest with violence in 2017. After a plea, the 2018 charges were resolved, and Anderson’s potential punishment was reduced to six months of non-reporting probation.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini also reported later (Oct. 2018) that Anderson would not be suspended by the NFL for any violation of league policies. Still, the non-football related issues made the NYJ organization question handing the breakout star a large amount of money.
Eventually, new general manager Joe Douglas decided to let him walk in free agency after his rookie contract expired. Many fans criticized the Jets GM for the decision at the time — especially after Anderson registered his first 1,000-yard campaign of his career in 2020 with the Carolina Panthers — but it ended up working out for the Green & White long-term.
After the Panthers paid Anderson, he quickly became a problem and a distraction. The wideout was critical of his quarterbacks when things didn’t go his way, playing the blame-game throughout his final two seasons with his second team.
That led to Carolina deciding to trade him after a year and a half of lackluster play, but he was even more of a nonfactor with the Cardinals — who somehow got worse in 2022 after acquiring Anderson. The pass-catcher now known as “Chosen” will attempt to pick up the pieces and start anew in 2023. The only question is: Where?
With a cap hit of $12 million this year and a dead cap release charge of zero according to Over the Cap, Anderson is basically a guaranteed cut after the regime change in Arizona. He should hit the open market in a few weeks when the new league year begins.