Inside Alix Earle's Winning Romance With Braxton Berrios

Originally appeared on E! Online

TikTok may be a different kind of contact sport, but football player Braxton Berrios got the hang of it pretty quickly once Alix Earle started drawing up plays for him.

"It's my way to support her," the Miami Dolphins wide receiver told E! News in February about his occasional cameos on his girlfriend's account, much to the ongoing delight of Earle's 7 million followers. "This is what she does, and honestly, it's been a new world for me, but it's been a lot of fun."

It remains unclear if his first-ever appearance was a faceless (and shirtless) blink-and-you-missed-it hug atop an unmade bed in June 2023, but in any case the pair have become quite the team since.

"I wish I could translate the happiness you bring me every day," Berrios, 28, posted Dec. 16 for Earle's 23rd birthday, about a month after she confirmed that, why yes, she did have a boyfriend. "Observing you has been inspiring, being with you is fulfilling, and loving you is easy. You have the best heart A and I hope today makes you feel as special as you are."

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And the guy known as "NFL man" in Earle's public parlance has really come through, and not just by planning a full slate of Valentine's Day activities or being an ideal travel companion during the off-season.

"I really do appreciate NFL man, and he is the best and is so respectful of me and I'm trying to be my best self," Earle said on her Hot Mess podcast in December, calling their coupling a "healthy relationship."

She also appreciates that Berrios has her back whenever she fumbles the proverbial ball—or, more likely, just thinks she has.

"He's always really supportive of me and if I ever get in my head or overthink anything, he's there to keep me grounded and bring positive energy," she told E! News in February at Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin's Super Bowl party in Las Vegas. "So I'm grateful to have him by my side."

And Earle, of course, is Berrios' number one fan—or should we say fanatic, the New Jersey native admitting in an Aug. 22 TikTok that she spent "probably way too much money" on eBay buying a signed No. 0 Dolphins jersey that was touted as "vintage," before she remembered the former New England Patriot and New York Jet had only been on the team for one season.

"I don't know," she said, also rolling her eyes over the signed photo that came with the package, "I must have been out of my mind when I bought it."

Hey, being head over heels can do that to a girl...

On a May episode of her podcast, Earle shared that she and Berrios bonded quickly over nightly Q&A sessions that they turned into a game.

"We would pick categories," she explained. "'So tell me something I don't know about you with your family.' 'Tell me something I don't know about you with your childhood.' 'Tell me something I don't know about you with your career, or with your icks.'"

Before they knew it, after playing at this for hours at a time, they were super close, super fast.

"And we'll still play it at times," she added, "but I feel like now we know each other so well, it's not as fun as in the beginning." Watching her friends going on dates, however, and knowing how long it can take to get to know someone, Earle fully endorses the crash course method.

On the flip side of that, meanwhile, is the importance of balancing outings for herself and her pals with quality relationship time.

"Of course they can coexist and live in the same realm," she mused in April on Hot Mess, shutting down breakup rumors triggered by Earle going to Coachella without her boyfriend. "Braxton and my friends and my family all get along very, very well," she said, "but I just think there's a difference of a girls' trip vibe versus a girls' trip plus someone's significant other there."

Braxton was totally fine with her decision, she added, noting that "a Coachella bender" probably wouldn't have been the best for him while he was cranking up his workouts for football season anyway.

But how well it went when she explained to him what she wanted stuck with her.

"There's just such a difference when you're communicating with someone versus just leaving things unsaid," Earle said, "and that's where I think things in a relationship can get a little tricky." As in, not being straightforward would have caused so many more headaches.

And her message to those who thought they'd split up or perhaps had an open relationship because they didn't make one trip together: "You can have a life outside of your significant other, and that's OK," Earle said. "I think that's healthy...I don't think you need to shut down your life when you start dating someone."

Not to mention, they spend tons of time together, and take plenty of pictures to prove it. See the couple's sweetest snaps:

Red Carpet Cuties

"Big W"

Birthday Celebration

Romantic Vacation

Relaxing in Paradise

Sunset Views