From Swipe Right to Sideline Romance: Ryan Russell and Corey O’Brien’s Six-Year Journey
Avery Sinclair here and brace yourself because I have to cover yet another celebrity pairing like it is groundbreaking news – Ryan Russell and Corey O’Brien have been an item for six years and somehow you might care.
Back in May 2019, three months before the former Dallas Cowboys defensive end formally announced he was bisexual, he swiped right on comedian and dancer Corey O’Brien via a dating app. Russell admits in his 2023 memoir The Yards Between Us that O’Brien’s profile was about as informative as a closed playbook and his Instagram captions were skimpy at best. Undeterred, Russell slid into those direct messages and sparked a text conversation that quickly found chemistry.
Their first face-to-face meet-up took place at a Los Angeles cafe and, according to both parties, there were no flags on this play. They covered everything from sobriety and the perils of dating in L.A. to the closet that Russell was still inching out of, life in professional sports, dance moves and family dynamics. “We didn’t spend many days apart after that,” Russell wrote, and honestly, neither of them seemed to mind.
Less than two weeks after Russell publicly embraced his bisexual identity in an August 2019 essay for ESPN.com, a paparazzi snap of him holding hands with O’Brien went viral. O’Brien later quipped on TikTok that he still knows nothing about football except that the NFL veteran tackles him whenever the opportunity arises. That photo marked a clear departure from Russell’s old instinct to let go of his partner’s hand in front of a camera.
Russell’s NFL career never fully regained steam after a 2018 shoulder injury. Drafted by the Cowboys in 2015, he spent one season in Dallas and two with the Buccaneers before pivoting to poetry, writing and activism. His choice to live openly, he told Jejune Magazine, was about more than career prospects – it was about self respect and setting an example for small-town Texans who juggle faith, family and football.
For his part, O’Brien marked 11 years of sobriety in 2023, a milestone he credits in part to Russell’s steady support. In an interview with Out Front Magazine, the comedian revealed Russell was by his side when he decided just months after they met that he needed to cut out alcohol entirely. Their dynamic, as Russell reflected, has always balanced truth and love over fear of backlash.
So there you have it – an NFL history-maker who swapped tackles for truth, and a dancer-comedian who gave up booze in support of love, all while defying the usual celebrity romance narrative. Don’t hold your breath waiting for a plot twist because this team has been winning uninterrupted since play one.
And that’s today’s dose of gridiron romance. You’re welcome.
Sources: Celebrity Storm and E! News, ESPN.com, The Yards Between Us, Jejune Magazine, TikTok, Out Front Magazine
Attribution: Creative Commons Licensed
