SAN JOSE, Calif. -- People get tattoos for many reasons. Some do it to honor family, or to to remind them of where they came from and where they want to go. Others did it with no deeper meaning than they simply wanted one. We talked to players at the 2016 Super Bowl's Opening Night about their tattoos. Here are their stories.
(Click any photo to enlarge.)
Broncos S David Bruton, 28, 7th season
"There's Touchdown Jesus overlooking the [Notre Dame] campus. Everything goes left to right, so then you have the Basilica and the Golden Dome. It's basically a map on my arm. On my right wrist it says 'Ambition' in white ink. I have a glow-in-the-dark tattoo on my left arm and then I have my back done. ... I actually drew this one up (on my right shoulder) -- it's Jesus crying over the world."
Broncos C Dillon Day, 24, rookie
"My first tattoo I got was my back. It's a Polynesian mask. And that was senior year in high school. [The mask] needs some touching up. The guy kinda went outside the lines. He wasn't the best tattoo artist. ... I spent so much time on my back, and I never look at it so I was tired of messing with it. So I just moved to my arms.
Then when I got to college, my first tattoo was the dragon. I got them done in New Orleans -- I'm from Louisiana, so I just went there, wanted a dragon, told the guy to draw me up a dragon. Drew that sumbitch up, put it on there. Next got a little Japanese mask. When all that was done with the sleeve, I moved (to the left arm).
"I used to have two three-quarter sleeves and then I eventually moved down all the way. I got a tiger, I have a flower with a skull in it. They don't mean anything at all. Nothing at all. The only reason I got them is because I like the way they look."
Broncos LB Danny Trevathan, 25, 4th NFL season
"It's a lion. It represents strength. FTW stands for 'Forget the World.' It represents my being locked in. You just gotta play your game. You can't worry about what's going on in the world."
Broncos CB Lorenzo Doss, 21, rookie
"This is my first tattoo. I got it in college, my last year at Tulane. I just always wanted to get my whole arm tattooed -- both arms. I'm still working on my left arm. I have Tulane on my wrist and Mary on [my left arm]."
Broncos OT Tyler Polumbus, 30, 8th NFL season
"I got this one when I was 18. It's a sun and a cross and it says 'Paid in Full.' Christ paid my life in full when he died. I never thought I was going to get another tattoo and then I just recently got this one over the offseason. It says 'Let Brotherly Love Continue,' and it's my brother's initials. He passed away over the offseason."
Broncos NT Darius Kilgo, 24, rookie
"I just got a tribal tattoo and I have the initial for my first name with a crown. I got that freshman year of college."
Panthers DE Wes Horton, 26, 3rd NFL season
"I got this one at the end of high school. It's a cross with a crown that says 'With God All Things Are Possible.' It applies to my life. When things get tough I can always go back to my faith and what I stand for, and knowing that anything's possible. I can come out of any hole that I'm in knowing that I have my faith in Him. Knowing that He can get me out of certain situations. And then with [my left arm], this is 'humble' in Chinese. It's what I try and live by. I try to be a humble guy. Playing at the highest level, it's real easy to kind of get an ego or to kind of get a little in over your head. And I've always been a fan of Chinese symbols."
Broncos WR Andre Caldwell, 30, 8th NFL season
"One of my most meaningful tattoos is my mother's name. It says 'Deborah, Everlasting Love.' She always has my back, always supported me throughout my whole life so that's very meaningful to me. On my hands, in a very visible spot, it says 'Truly Blessed.' I feel like I'm blessed to be in this situation. The cards I've been dealt in my life, you know, I had some ups and downs but I'm truly blessed to be in the situation I'm in. I got a great family, a great wife, a great child. So I'm just blessed by those situations. Across my back in big bold letters it says 'Against All Odds.' I've overcome some obstacles in my life. I've had the odds against me and I feel like I've prevailed and won in life."
Broncos OT Ryan Harris, 30, 8th NFL season
"The black and the white arm are my multiracial lineage coming together. All the water signifies God to me. My parents came from God, their union brought me here. The shackles represent breaking other people's expectations and making your own. And at the end, the sphere is all my dreams, all my goals and it always has God in it. From my family I learned loyalty and respect. From my faith, knowledge and sacrifice."
Broncos RB Kapri Bibbs, 23, 2nd NFL season
"My whole left arm is dedicated to my mother. I have her birthday and her name and angels -- all that's for her. I got it when I was 17, 18. That's when I got my first tattoo. And I've been getting them ever since. My right arm is dedicated to my family, so I have my brother, sisters, grandmother and a couple of Bible verses."
Broncos OT Cameron Jefferson, 23, rookie
"I have Isaiah 41:10 on my side, it's my favorite scripture -- ' Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.' And on my right arm, I have my mother's name because she's my strength and my heart. I got it on her birthday two years ago."
Panthers FS Tre Boston, 23, 2nd NFL season
"My mom told me I can go half sleeves when I got drafted. So right now, I have a little bit over a quarter of my arm done. I can get half done because I did get drafted. She told me I can go all arms once my second contract hits. So that's two years -- maybe one, we'll see. I'm in no rush, you know but I'm happy to be able to earn them."
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