As many are well aware, the Ford family has owned the Detroit Lions for quite some time now, and that means the automaker and its hometown team have also long shared a close relationship. In fact, just this past March, Ford Motor Company announced that it had extended its naming rights partnership for Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions, which first began in 2002 when the team relocated to downtown Detroit. Now, a Lions rookie with an ironic last name is tooling around that same town in a new Ford F-150 Lightning.
That player is Isaac TeSlaa, a wide receiver who played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks before he was selected by the Detroit Lions in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft. We’re currently just a few games into TeSlaa’s rookie season, but The Blue Oval saw this as the perfect opportunity to create a rather humorous bit of marketing. Given the fact that TeSlaa’s last name is pretty close to matching up with its main EV rival – Tesla – this post does precisely that.
Rather than tool around in a Tesla, TeSlaa now has a Ford F-150 Lightning in his garage, as the automaker touts in this recent Instagram post. It’s also funny for a few other reasons – other than the fact that Ford and Tesla are rival automakers, rumors surfaced not too long that Tesla had actually bought Ford – which was obviously fake news.
Regardless, Ford and the Lions continue to enjoy a cozy relationship, outside of the company’s ownership status and stadium naming rights. In fact, Ford CEO Jim Farley himself has been seen in attendance at numerous Detroit Lions games in recent years, and a group of Michigan dealers also went so far as to create and sell a special Detroit Lions Edition Ford F-150, too.
Nothing else has seemingly changed but the price.
Its outlook remains a bit mixed.
He's taking a wait and see approach as some brands jump onboard.
Improving year-over-year, along with the entire market.
The Blue Oval wants to ease into the proposed changes.
A much quicker version of the SUV.
