A Reliable Wide Receiver (Patreon)

This story was inspired by a suggestion from my good friend Nate / Soul Controller, who also very generously beta-read and helped me outline it. Big thanks go out to him!

Once upon a time the New England Patriots had been the big bad empire of the NFL. Those days had actually only been as recent as three seasons ago, but in the world of football, that might as well have been a lifetime. After the departure of Tom Brady in favour of Tampa, the once well-oiled machine of a team soon found itself caving in like a house of cards until it was a shell of its former self. They definitely weren’t Super Bowl contenders anymore. Hell, they couldn’t even win their own division! It was highly frustrating for those who had been with the team for a long tenure, and nobody wanted to see things get any worse, which was why Coach Belicheck had given his staff full permission to pull out all the stops and make the Patriots an unstoppable force once more.

For Josh McDaniels, the team’s offensive coordinator, restocking the roster of wide receivers was a high priority. Just five years ago they’d had a trio of elite talents on their roster, but they’d traded Amendola and Hogan away in favour of younger models, and Edelman had been forced into retirement by mounting injuries. Their receiving core was being carried by rookies and undrafted players, and McDaniels was frustrated by the simple fact that they hadn’t uncovered any diamonds in the rough like they had when they’d drafted Julian Edelman in the seventh round of his draft class. Sure, some of their newer receivers definitely had promise, but it seemed like a leap to describe any of them as potential superstars and that was an issue. You couldn’t build an elite team without superstars.

With free agency only offering a collection of washed up veterans and ill-experienced rookies who would be a poor fit for their offense scheme, Coach McDaniels knew that he had to be a bit more creative with his problem solving. Mercifully, a chance encounter during the off-season provided him with precisely what he needed: a miracle worker. Paul Hevanoff was a walking enigma, but his reputation definitely preceded him, if only in scandalous whispers. McDaniels had doubted every impossible rumour he’d heard right up until the point where he himself had watched Hevanoff transform from a middle-aged man with silver hair and a goatee into an early-twenties surfer type, with his long blond hair pulled up into a messy bun and ocean blue eyes.

From that precise moment, an idea began to form in the offensive coordinator’s head. He’d spent so long reflecting on the receiving core he’d once had - the group who had claimed numerous Super Bowl championships - so why not fall back on those elite players and bring them in for a comeback? There was of course the issue of their aging bodies and the injuries that doubtlessly built up after years of playing football, but with Mr Hevanoff’s help, those problems could become a thing of the past. He could help bring the Patriots back to their former dominance, and secure McDaniels a safe job for the rest of his working life!

After the offensive coordinator explained his intentions, Mr Hevanoff quickly and confidently confirmed that he was capable and willing to bring those plans to fruition. He didn’t work for free, of course, and his services came at a high price, but it was one worth paying if it brought about a second golden age for the New England Patriots. As soon as McDaniels had received permission from those further up the management chain, he reached back out to Hevanoff and requested that they move into actioning those plans as swiftly as possible.

Gunner Olszewski had shown promise in his previous two seasons with the Patriots, particularly when it came to punt returns, and that had earned him the appreciation of the coaching staff. However, despite getting into the best shape of his life ahead of the upcoming season, Gunner’s performance at the early summer training camp left a lot to be desired. He cut his routes across the field just fine and his speed was as incredible as ever, but he was fumbling the ball or straight up missing half of the passes that were being aimed in his direction. A wide receiver with unreliable hands was a hindrance to any team, and that landed Gunner in the crosshairs. Nobody’s roster spot was safe, and underperforming players had to be cut in order for the team to make it down to the fifty-three man limit. Gunner, unfortunately, had slipped further and further down the list of priorities based on his training camp performance.

Enter Julian Edelman. The man’s career stats spoke for themselves: thirty-six regular receiving touchdowns, second in postseason receptions and receiving yards, a Super Bowl MVP award… the list could go on. Edelman had expressed countless times over the previous year that he felt like he still had more to give to the Patriots organisation, it was only a shame that the various injuries he had sustained throughout his career had finally caught up to him and stopped him from playing at the same elite level. Given Mr Hevanoff’s rather unique abilities though, the retired wide receiver had a shot at making a comeback, and he was going to do it with Gunner Olszewski’s help…

x

Retirement was nice, but it wasn’t football. Julian’s heart hadn’t moved on from the sport that he’d spent the past two decades playing, all the way from high school to the NFL, and he wasn’t sure it would any time soon. He’d been busying himself by setting up a production company with contacts he’d made in Hollywood, but even though that kept him busy, his mind often wandered back to his former teammates and the rush that came from competing in a professional sports environment. Things were only getting worse now that the summer training camps had started up, and preseason wasn’t too far away. Julian longed to be out there with the rest of the Patriots roster and hopefuls, but his body refused to allow it. Even though he was only thirty-five and thus could hardly be categorised as old, his body had been broken and bruised so many times over the years that he spent most of his days pleading with sore joints and aching muscles. It was a tough price to pay, but he wouldn’t have exchanged his eleven years in the NFL for anything.

While it wasn’t uncommon for his former teammates or even some of the coaching staff to contact him, Julian was surprised to receive a call from the Patriots offensive coordinator requesting for him to come to the training facility. Julian had a good relationship with Josh McDaniels, having worked closely with him during three successful Super Bowl campaigns and countless other playoff runs, so he happily agreed, although he maintained some curiosity as to the purpose of their meeting. It didn’t seem out of the realm of possibility that the Patriots head office might want him to film some content for their social media channels, especially now that he’d set up his own production company, but why would they get McDaniels of all people to contact him if that was the case? The offensive coordinator was hyper-focused on the game and building the offense team to the best they could be, he didn’t have time for trivial things such as filming digital content.

Never in a million years would Julian have guessed the true purpose of their meeting. In fact, when McDaniels had shared his plans with the retired wide receiver, Julian quickly began scanning the room for the locations of any hidden cameras. This had to be some sort of setup for a new NFL prank show or something, right? Modern medicine and science were achieving incredible things but there was no way they could possibly do what McDaniels had suggested… right? “I’m sorry, Josh, but I’m gonna need you to run that one by me again,” Julian remarked, keeping his face as neutral as possible. He had no doubt that there were cameras hidden around the office trying to catch some sort of hilarious reaction from him, and Julian was stubborn enough not to give them what they wanted. He’d play along, sure, but he’d be playing by his rules.

“I said, we’re going to get you back out on the field for this season and we’ll do it by putting you in Gunner’s body,” McDaniels repeated, his expression and tone consistently serious. Julian was impressed, he’d thought that the older man would struggle to keep himself from laughing while delivering such fantastical (and impossible) promises. “Your elite knowledge and instincts for the game, his younger body with a lot less abuse on it to hold you back.”

This time it was Julian who struggled to fight back a smile. Even after having the offensive coordinator repeat it to him, it didn’t sound any less ridiculous. Of course this was all some sort of comedy bit! How could it not be? “Right, right… and Gunner, what, switches into my body?” The smile finally began to break through as he couldn’t help but make a cheeky addition: “Oh, do we have to wait until Friday to make the swap? Is that how this works?”

McDaniels finally chuckled, but rather than letting the joke crumble, he persisted. “It won’t be a swap. Gunner’s still going to be in his body, you’ll just be pushing him into the passenger seat, so to speak,” he explained calmly, as if they were talking about something as mundane as the weather.

“And Gunner’s okay with me taking his body for a joyride? That seems like a hard sell.”

The other man’s smile thinned somewhat. “Gunner wants what is best for the team,” McDaniels replied in a measured tone, “There’s also a clause in his contract that states the organisation can send him for further training with Mr Hevanoff as long as we add a bonus onto the kid’s paycheck. He won’t be complaining when the season’s over and he’s got a shiny new ring thanks to you.”

“This Hevanoff guy… he’s the one that’s going to put me in Gunner’s body?” Julian asked, eyes narrowing. He’d make McDaniels crumble and admit this was all one big (and very bad) joke soon enough, he was sure of it. “What is he, a warlock? A wizard? Is he Harry Potter all grown up?”

“That information’s beyond either of our paygrades. He’s told me he can do it, and I’ve seen his talents with my own eyes.” The offensive coordinator laced his hands together, placed them on the desk and leaned forwards to lessen the distance between the two old friends. “Trust me, Jules, this is the best chance for you to ever play football again.”

Silence lingered between them for several moments as Julian tried to piece together the confusing puzzle laid before him. Eventually he came to a surprising conclusion: “You’re serious about this, aren’t you? You really believe he can put my mind in Gunner’s body.” He couldn’t stop himself from letting out a brief chuckle. He’d never pegged McDaniels as the type to hold such wild beliefs, but people were full of surprises.

“Believe me or don’t, Jules, but look at it this way: what do you have to lose?”

My dignity, Julian’s cynical mind offered. If this really was being recorded for some prank show, openly agreeing to something as wild as possessing another man’s body would surely become a highlight clip that would be replayed for years to come. Still, there was an earnestness to McDaniels’ eyes, and the offensive coordinator had never led him astray before. As much as he didn’t want to, Julian was actually starting to buy into the idea. “So is there some contract I have to sign or something?” he asked finally, letting out a brief sigh that expressed his continued uncertainty, “You’ve got my attention, but I’m still expecting a camera crew to show up at any minute and tell me that I’ve been punk’d.”

The coach rolled upon the top drawer of his desk, pulled out a manilla envelope and slid it across the desk with a smile. “I knew you couldn’t say no,” McDaniels remarked, a proud smile spreading over his face as Julian opened the envelope and removed the thirty-page contract that resided within. “Make sure you read through everything before signing. Get it back to me as soon as you’ve made a decision, and then I can call Hevanoff to make the proper arrangements.”

Julian’s heart picked up the pace as he read through the first few lines of the contract. It all read as incredibly official despite the outlandish suggestions of its content. Could it be possible that this wasn’t all a joke, and Julian could actually play in the upcoming season? That seemed like a dangerous thing to hope for, but hope was beginning to blossom within him nonetheless. Before he’d even made it to the third page, Julian knew that his mind was already made up. Skipping all the way to the last page of the thick document, the man hastily scribbled his signature on the line. However, as he sat back in his chair and looked up at the grinning McDaniels, he had only one question left to ask himself: Just what am I getting myself into?

x

Gunner Olszewski let out an audible sigh of relief when he saw his name listed on the Patriots’ season-starting roster. Securing a place on the team had been anything but a certainty and Gunner knew it. His performance in the preseason matches simply hadn’t been up to scratch, particularly with him not breaking coverage efficiently enough and, most damningly, dropping or fumbling catches. What was the point of a wide receiver who couldn’t catch? Sure, he had been a cornerback during his college football career, but he wasn’t going to hide behind that as an excuse. He needed his transition into his new position to go smoothly, and it simply wasn’t, which in Gunner’s eyes meant he simply wasn’t working hard enough.

Unfortunately for Gunner, this feeling of relief didn’t last for long as he received a rare summons from Coach McDaniels just as he had been making his way towards the exit. Of course, it wasn’t entirely impossible that the coaching staff had changed their minds on keeping him on the team and thought there was someone more worthy of the roster spot than him, so Gunner remained cautious. More than once in recent training sessions McDaniels had seemed irritated by Gunner’s lack of progress, even if he hid it behind encouraging words. Ending up being relegated to the practice squad wasn’t the worst fate in the world, but it would definitely come with a bump to the young man’s pride. If he could do anything to avoid that, he would.

Strangely, McDaniels hadn’t called Gunner to his office but rather to the trainer’s room where the players usually underwent their physical examinations. Gunner really didn’t think his physique or health was in question - he was in the best shape of his life - so the decision to meet in such a venue was a complete mystery to him. When he arrived though, he discovered that McDaniels wasn’t alone, there were two other people in the room, one familiar and one not. Gunner had trained closely with Julian Edelman over the previous two seasons, understanding the importance and value of learning from a veteran of the game, especially one who had transitioned to the wide receiver role from another position. They weren’t close friends by any means, but Gunner definitely admired the older man for all he had achieved in his career, so he flashed a respectful smile towards the recently retired player once they locked eyes.

The third man in the room aside from McDaniels and Edelman was a complete enigma to Gunner. He appeared to be middle-aged and had a full head of silver hair, as well as a neatly trimmed goatee. His outfit consisted of a grey pinstripe three-piece suit, and the watch on his wrist was either made of real gold or a very close alloy. Overall he had the look of a distinguished gentleman, like a man out of time, and thus Gunner was completely perplexed as to what he could be doing there. A new team sponsor maybe? That was about the only thing his brain could conjure up, and even that seemed ill-fitting.

“You wanted to see me, coach?” Gunner asked, forcing himself to focus on McDaniels. His heartbeat was somewhat elevated and the strange gathering of people hadn’t done much to quell his anxious suspicions that this meeting wouldn’t end well for him.

“Thanks for getting here so quickly,” McDaniels replied politely, “I’m sorry I couldn’t give you more details ahead of time but this is a… sensitive matter.” That’s never good, Gunner thought darkly. The mystery man could be there for any number of reasons given the young wide receiver knew absolutely nothing about him other than what he could see on the surface, but what did Julian Edelman have to do with anything? To his knowledge, Edelman hadn’t stuck around to continue working with the Patriots in any way and was instead going off to produce movies for Hollywood or something. What ‘sensitive matter’ could possibly involve him?

A heavy sigh from Coach McDaniels pulled Gunner back out of his thoughts. “Look, Gunner, we want you to be an elite player, and we know that you want that too, but we both know that you’re not quite there.” There was nothing strictly false about what the coach had said and Gunner knew it, but it still hurt to have it stated so bluntly and in front of other people. “That’s why we’ve brought in Jules here--”

At the mention of his name, Julian stepped forward. Gunner spared a quick glance towards the retired player and was surprised to find that Julian was fixing McDaniels with a steely glare. “Wait a second, does he not know about any of this?” Julian challenged, a disapproving edge to his voice.

“Any of what?” Gunner asked, a twisted knot beginning to form in his gut. With every passing word that was said, the outlook of the conversation became bleaker and bleaker. “I haven’t been told anything, man. What am I supposed to know?” At this sudden outburst, the mystery man chuckled softly. Gunner nodded in his direction. “And who is this guy?”

McDaniels raised both hands in a gesture that was evidently supposed to promote cooler heads and took a moment to let silence fall before offering up any explanation. “As I told you, Julian, it’s in his contract. It’s not down to me if he reads the contract in full or not,” he directed at the retired player, before turning towards Gunner. “That is Mr Hevanoff, he’s a special consultant who will be working with us as we get ready for the start of the season. If you look on page seventeen of your contract you’ll see a clause stating that the Patriots organisation has full rights to hand you over to Mr Hevanoff here for some extracurricular training, in exchange for a bonus, of course.”

Gunner was struggling to make sense of anything the offensive coordinator was saying. “Extracurricular training?” he repeated, lips forming a confused frown, “What the hell does that mean? What kinda training am I gonna get from him that I can’t get out on the field with the team?” An uneasy feeling had crept down the young man’s spine and only worsened when he briefly made eye contact with Hevanoff. There was something disconcerting about his steely gray eyes and the thin lips that had been drawn into a bemused smirk.

“Josh, this feels wrong,” Julian declared. “This isn’t the kinda thing you can just spring on him. If I’d known he was in the dark, I wouldn’t have agreed--”

“But you did,” Mr Hevanoff interrupted. The tone of his voice was pompous and judgmental, and he dominated the room with its volume. “You signed the contract. Both of you did.”

“It’s out of my hands now,” McDaniels sighed, offering up a shrug of his shoulders. “Trust me, this is all for the team’s benefit. Both of you are going to be helping us win back the division and get back on top where we belong.”

By this point, Gunner was eyeing up the door. How much trouble would he be in if he just stormed out and refused to deal with any more of McDaniels’ weird behaviour and the creepy Mr Hevanoff? “Can we cut the cryptic shit, please? Someone just tell me what the hell this extra training is and what Julian has to do with it?”

“You are a hot-headed one, aren’t you?” Hevanoff remarked, taking several steps towards Gunner. The young athlete tensed up, unhappy with the closing distance between them. “Fine, I’ll explain. Your coach here has requested that I deposit the psyche of Mr Edelman into your body, so that your team can have one of its best players back. Does that answer your question?”

Absolutely fuckin’ not. “Deposit his psyche into-- what the hell are you talking about?” Gunner snapped, looking between the three other men in disbelief. “Are y’all on crazy tablets or something?” He broke down into a crazed laugh and shook his head. “No, this is a prank, right? You're pranking me, aren’t you?”

While Gunner was in the middle of attempting to justify the madness around him, Julian turned to McDaniels and spoke in a low voice: “Josh, I don’t want to do this. It’s not right.” The coach’s only response was to offer up a guilty expression and shake his head. Having gotten nowhere with his once trusted friend, Julian instead faced Mr Hevanoff. “I’m backing out of the deal. I’m not going through with it.”

Hevanoff smirked. “A deal’s a deal, Mr Edelman,” he remarked with a hint of snideness to his tone, “Now please, look into this ring for me.” The older gentleman lifted up his hand to show the retired athlete the ring on his finger and immediately Julian was captivated by the otherworldly glow that seemed to come from the purple gem. “That’s it, Mr Edelman. Let go. Let the ring take you...”

What happened next provoked Gunner to swear at top volume: Julian’s solid form slowly became translucent and he was pulled in towards the ring, shrinking in size until he finally disappeared completely. It was like something out of a movie, but Gunner was seeing it with his own eyes!

“What the hell was that?! Where did he go?!” the terrified young man exclaimed, only to receive no answers. Instead, Mr Hevanoff lunged at him with a speed that should have been impossible for a man of his apparent age, and pressed the gemstone of the ring directly against the side of Gunner’s skull. The wide receiver barely had the time to gasp and jerk back slightly before he was suddenly paralysed, incapable of doing so much as averting his eyes from where they were locked in battle with Hevanoff’s fierce gaze. His face was frozen in an expression of fear, with wide eyes and his mouth slightly ajar, while his petrified posture captured him on the defensive.

Had Gunner still had the ability to do so, he would have yelped in pain from the sudden pressure that built up within his brain, like the most extreme split-second migraine. The discomfort spread from there, worming its way right through his body and leaving absolutely no part of him untouched. It traversed all the way to the tips of his fingers and toes, causing every muscle in his body to tense up despite him having no control over them. Rational thought was cut off by the invasive sensation, leaving Gunner to silently pray that he would make it through whatever hellacious experience he was being put through.

After several long seconds the pain finally began to settle and Gunner’s muscles relaxed. He was even able to uncurl his hands and raise them in front of his face - although, concerningly, he hadn’t been the one to trigger such actions. His body craned its neck from side to side and rolled its shoulders, all while Gunner internally struggled to get back into the driver’s seat. What’s going on? Why is my body moving without me? There was no understating the sheer terror he felt at losing control of his own limbs; it was a waking nightmare that only got worse the longer it went on.

“How do you feel, Julian?” That had been McDaniels, stepping into his vision as Hevanoff took several steps back. Curiously, the gemstone on the gentleman’s ring which had been glowing just a short while earlier was now completely dull.

“Strange,” his body answered, “Fuzzy. This is weird.” Gunner desperately tried to call out for help, but his vocal cords remained off limits to him. The fact that McDaniels had addressed him by the name Julian though. Was it possible…

“That’ll happen,” Hevanoff clarified, “Coach McDaniels, would you mind if I have a moment alone with Mr Edelman here?” The offensive coordinator hesitated for a moment before agreeing and stepping out of the room, leaving Gunner - and apparently Julian - alone with the unsettling older man. “I know you can hear me in there, Mr Olszewski,” Hevanoff remarked as soon as the door was closed, startling Gunner with the direct address. “Don’t worry, my boy, you’re quite safe. Julian here will take good care of your body for the football season, won’t he?”

“He can hear me?” Gunner’s voice exclaimed, the tone full of concern - and a little guilt. “Gunner, man, I’m sorry. I thought they’d cleared it with you. I never would have--”

“That’s enough from you for now, Mr Edelman,” Hevanoff interrupted. “I’m sure our young friend is overwhelmed enough as it is.” He wasn’t wrong, Gunner’s mind was reeling from everything that had just been communicated to him. He’d been convinced that the three men were joking around when they mentioned that they were going to put Julian’s mind into his body, but now he was forced to accept that they had been telling the truth. It would never make sense to Gunner but it didn’t need to make sense - he was living through it, and once the experience was over he knew he’d absolutely never forget it.

Mr Hevanoff reiterated his earlier statements, clarifying the legality of what he’d done thanks to the contracts they’d signed, and confirmed that he wouldn’t be undoing the possession until the football season was over. “Your coaches are putting a lot of faith in the pair of you,” he stressed, holding the athlete by his broad shoulders. “Do them proud - or don’t! It really won’t make a difference to me!” With that, his lips split into a predatory grin and a shiver ran down Gunner’s spine. Whether he or Julian was responsible for it, he didn’t know, but it seemed like they were both on the same page: whoever this Hevanoff guy was, the less they had to do with him from then on, the better!

“Jules-- wait, I should really be calling you Gunner from now on,” McDaniels started, snapping straight back into business mode now that the ‘roster reshuffling’ had been taken care of. “I know it’s late in the day but I want you to come out onto the practice field with me. Mac has stuck around to run some routes with you, and it’ll give you some time to gel with the new quarterback. Obviously we’re not going to tell what just happened here. The only people that need to know are the folks in this room and Bill. It would distract the players too much.” You don’t say! If Gunner was capable of laughing, he would have. Apparently Julian had more restraint than him, because the man currently in control of his body just nodded and began to stretch out his limbs. “We’ve got an uphill climb ahead of us, but if anyone can do it, I know it’s you. Let’s go get ourselves another ring, shall we? How about it, Gunner?”

Not like we have much of a choice, Gunner thought drily, wondering if Julian could hear him in his head. If he did, he made no indication of it. Instead, Gunner found his body nodding and a clear confirmation burst forth from his lips: “I’m ready to get to work, coach!”

x

The New England Patriots had finally made it to their bye week on the fourteenth week of the football season, and the team were in much better spirits than they had been the previous year. The team were standing at nine wins and five losses, which meant they had already improved on last year’s seven wins. Maybe they wouldn’t win the division back from the Bills but a playoff spot seemed to be locked down and that meant they were one stop closer to being back on top!

Mac Jones had done wonders as the team’s starting quarterback, outclassing the rest of the rookie QBs in the league. Among his many impressive abilities was the chemistry he displayed on the field with his wide receivers, and the chief among those receivers was the surprise success story of the season: Gunner Olszewski. Fantasy football pundits had initially been stunned by the team’s decision to place Olszewski as one of the starting wide receivers, and for the first two games he had played in the clunky fashion they expected of him. By the time the Patriots faced off against the Saints in the third week of the season though, it seemed as if a fire had been lit underneath the third-year player. In that game alone he had the most receiving yards out of anyone on the team, had scored two touchdowns and completed a season high eighty-two yard punt return. It was a stunning and unexpected play, but it excited the army of Patriots fans gathered in the stadium.

Over the next few games, Gunner proved that he wasn’t a one week wonder either. Although they’d faced a tough loss against the reigning Super Bowl champs the Tampa Bay Buccaneers - especially tough given they were being led by the Patriots’ legendary former quarterback, Tom Brady - the young wide receiver still put an impressive number of yards on the board and had a rushing touchdown to his name. The next two games, against the Texans and the Cowboys, were much better for the team and Gunner achieved back-to-back punt return touchdowns in those games. His stats continued to be impressive all the way through to the bye week, and numerous football websites had labelled him the ‘Most Improved Player of the Season’.

Of course, none of them were to know that it wasn’t actually Gunner Olszewski they were heaping praise onto, but rather Julian Edelman. Those rough first few weeks were attributed to the lingering guilt he felt about taking over the real Gunner’s body and his persisting bitterness towards McDaniels for tricking him into the deal, but eventually the guilt became secondary to Julian’s own love of the game. He’d always felt at his happiest when he was running his routes and making plays, and by week three he knew he simply couldn’t take his second chance for granted anymore. He needed to make the most of his opportunity, and that’s what he did. It helped when he rationalised to himself that he was just putting the younger player in a better position for the following season, once Julian had returned to his own body and life.

The remainder of training camp and those first few weeks of the season had been a strange time for the real Gunner, who remained strapped into the passenger seat of his own body. He continued to burn with anger whenever he saw McDaniels on the sidelines, and felt envy towards the veteran that was piloting his body, but even he couldn’t deny that Julian’s performance on the field was a step above his own. As the weeks progressed, his frustrations lessened but never completely evaporated; he still longed to be in charge of his body and career, but he supposed it wasn’t the worst thing in the world to have a veteran like Julian Edelman raising his stock in the NFL. Besides, it was only until the end of the season anyway. All he needed was a bit of patience.

By the fifth week of the regular season, Julian had really embraced his role as Gunner Olszewski and pushed away any hesitancy when it came to the choices he made. He had become something of a method actor, forcing himself to think and act like Gunner while he was off the football field. Remembering the truth of the situation would be an unnecessary distraction, and he had learned long ago there was absolutely no place for distractions in the middle of the football season.

With his new mindset locked in, Julian no longer had to feel guilty about picking up chicks and taking them home for some much-needed carnal pleasure. While Gunner was of a similar height and weight to Julian, the new body he possessed still felt notably different whenever he took the time to really explore it. The paler skin and the relative absence of body hair made his taut muscles seem to ‘pop’ a little more, and Gunner’s abs were much more pronounced than Julian’s own had ever been. The chicks loved the six-pack of abs in particular; it wasn’t uncommon for there to be moans of delight when he raised the front of his shirt to show off the lean muscles, and when they were in the bedroom it was never long before whatever girl he had brought home that night was peppering them with kisses and sensually running their tongue over each muscular bump.

Much to Julian’s surprise though, it seemed that Gunner (or his body, at least) wasn’t as entirely straight as he had initially presumed. There was no denying that the younger athlete had a preference towards women, but Julian had experienced a number of lustful stirrings within him towards some of the other players in the league, and he’d even exchanged blowjobs with Drue Tranquill of the Los Angeles Chargers after their week eight game. It was all good because they’d made it clear that it was a “no homo” ordeal both before and after getting each other off, which was something Julian had done with Jimmy G back in his own days in the league. Being hetero-flexible was the way forward, especially when you were on the road for months at a time with no guarantee that there would be time to go out and pick up a babe!

Gunner was actually relieved that the man occupying his body had finally given in and indulged in his carnal desires. He had an irrepressible sex drive and not being able to satiate those pleasures had been just as torturous as not actually being able to play football for himself, so when Julian finally brought a busty blond cheerleader back to his hotel room and fucked her brains out, Gunner was mentally celebrating as if they’d won the division championship game. He experienced every bit of pleasure that Julian did and savored the sensation of the cheerleader’s tongue worshipping his firm muscles, as well as her pretty lips around his thick shaft. Hell, he was so pleased that he didn’t even mind when Julian stumbled across his more open-minded attractions towards men, because anything that brought him pleasure and sexual stimulation was also successful in tiding Gunner over as they advanced towards the end of the season and the moment he’d get his body back under his own control.

Julian’s contributions towards the team’s success had encouraged McDaniels to make contact with Mr Hevanoff once again and bring back two more team veterans to better boost their chances of making a deep run in the playoffs. Danny Amendola found new life in the body and uniform of Nelson Agholor, while Chris Hogan rejoined his former teammates as second-year player Malcolm Perry. The three former Super Bowl champions were thrilled to be reunited on the same team, and it became a regular sight for the trio to hit up local nightclubs after a football game, no matter whether it was a win or a loss.

Thanks to the efforts of the three veterans, the cunning of Coach McDaniels, and the magic of Mr Hevanoff, it seemed clear that the Patriots were destined for a Super Bowl showdown. Julian was glad to finally end his career on his own terms with one more triumphant season, and then let the next generation of wide receivers take it from there. Everybody had said that Olsewski had promise, and maybe the success Julian had given him would light a fire under the younger man to really achieve his full potential in the following season.

What Julian and Gunner (nor the four other players who had ended up involved) didn’t know though was that their numerous wins throughout the season had activated a clause in the contracts they had all signed. On the very last page it clearly stated that should the Patriots make the playoffs, the veterans would be legally required to stay in their new body all the way through to the end of the following season. After all, McDaniels wanted to secure long term success and had paid Hevanoff a lot of money to achieve as such. He didn’t want the Patriots to have one more year of greatness before sinking back down the rankings.

The trio wouldn’t end up finding that out until the season was over, but if the team managed to capture its seventh Lombardi Trophy, they perhaps wouldn’t even mind spending another year in their new younger bodies...