Last week’s NFL Draft produced, as is tradition during the annual event, a viral star. Kiera Thieneman, the sister of Oregon safety and Bears first-round pick Dillon Thieneman, was ready for the spotlight and it found her.
During an interview with the family on Thursday night in Pittsburgh after her brother was taken with the No. 25 overall pick, she stole the show. Clips of her looking on as her father answered questions were all over social media.
Kiera then found herself in Friday’s Screencaps, an honor that underscores the impact she had on this year’s NFL Draft. The reported member of Kappa Kappa Gamma at Purdue is now in the history books alongside many of the other draft-night attention grabbers.
Where she takes the newfound attention is really up to her. Look no further than former WAG Gia Duddy, who stole the show during her then-boyfriend Will Levis’ draft slide.
She’s had a much better career as an influencer than her ex has had as a quarterback in the NFL. That doesn’t mean it’s easy to turn the viral attention into success. Not everyone makes it. The NFL is a tough business.
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The first step to making it work is leaning into it. On Monday, Kiera did that. She announced that she’s “officially a bears fan!” and had a behind-the-scenes draft-night highlight reel to go along with the announcement.
That’s a strong follow-up to first-round draft night success. I don’t know if this is the result of studying film or going off of instincts, but in either case, it’s the sort of skillful display you’re hoping to see out of a rookie.
There’s a long way to go before the season gets here and stealing the spotlight on Thursday night during the draft doesn’t guarantee anything. Everything in the NFL is earned and nobody’s going to hand you anything.
Now is the time for the Thienemans to get to work and prepare for their rookie season in Chicago. Best of luck to both of them as they enter the NFL.
