Los Angeles Sparks star Rickea Jackson seemed to raise some eyebrows during the opening round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Videos circulated across social media Thursday night that apparently showed the 24-year-old WNBA player sitting next to the former Tennessee football star James Pearce Jr.
Moments after NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell walked to the draft stage’s podium in Green Bay to announce the Atlanta Falcons were using the 26th overall pick to select Pearce, cameras switched to the pass rusher’s home in North Carolina.
Jackson appeared to smile, wrap an arm around Pearce and rub his leg as the football player’s family and friends celebrated the special moment.
Rumors about a romance between Jackson and Pearce have swirled for more than a year. Both athletes attended the University of Tennessee.
Jackson eventually caught wind of the viral videos and took to X to issue a response to the chatter.
“Soooo I have a doppelganger. Wow,” she wrote on X late Friday night.
The post had drawn more than 1.7 million views as of Friday afternoon.
Jackson’s response was met with some skepticism, while others took notice of the apparent humor in the Sparks star’s message.
Jackson’s NCAA basketball career began at Mississippi State. She eventually transferred to Tennessee, where she rose to stardom during her two seasons as a member of the Lady Vols. The Sparks drafted Jackson in the first round in 2024. She averaged 13.4 points per game during her rookie WNBA season.
The Falcons had the NFL’s second-lowest sack total last season. Pearce finished his final season with Tennessee with 7½ sacks.
But the Falcons gave up significant draft capital to get back into the first round Thursday night to pick Pearce.
Atlanta sent the Los Angeles Rams second-round and seventh-round picks in this year’s draft and the team’s first-round selection in 2026. In addition to the rights to the 26th overall pick, the Rams sent their third-round pick this year to the Falcons.
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