Mack Hollins: Vegetables, Cats, and a Super Bowl

Mack Hollins of the Buffalo Bills walks onto the field without shoes on before a game against the San Francisco 49ers. Kevin Sabitus/Getty

In the 2024 to 2025 season, the Buffalo Bills have adopted an offensive play style of “everyone eats.” After they traded their star wide receiver, Stefon Diggs, and WR2, Gabe Davis, The Bills went all-out, signing, trading, or drafting four wide receivers. One of the signings was receiver Mack Hollins from the Falcons, a tall and physical receiver capable of getting yards after the catch. This season, Hollins has put together a career year, with 378 receiving yards and five touchdowns, leading the team.

 Throughout the Bills’ successful campaign, Hollins has been more than just a football player. Many of his odd habits such as his constant shoelessness, his fear of cats, and his dislike of vegetables may flabbergast you. In his appearance with NFL Network’s Good Morning Football, Hollins described the motivation behind his odd obsession with being barefoot: “I’d be better [if I played with no shoes],” Hollins said. “That’s all I do in the offseason; I play with no shoes on. I wore cleats maybe eight times until OTAs started.” On the same show, Hollins also described his distaste for vegetables: “I don’t eat vegetables anymore because it is not right,” Hollins said. “The only time I eat vegetables is on Sunday because I want to be starving. I am vegan on game day. Like a great coach once said, ‘Hungry dogs run faster.’” When Hollins was growing up, his father had a lion as a house pet, the probable motivation for his weird fear of cats. “I hate cats. Cats will steal your soul,” said Hollins. “Never trust a cat. The small ones? No. Never look them in the eye.” Considering a lion’s tremendous size, it is curious that Hollins is especially wary of smaller felines.

 Now, the Bills enter the divisional round off of a twenty-four-point victory over the Denver Broncos. Hollins hauled in one catch for nineteen yards. Buffalo will next play the Baltimore Ravens, a team that they lost to by twenty-five points earlier in the season. Hollins only had one catch for five yards in that game. By the time this article is published, the Bills may be ready to play for their first Super Bowl victory in franchise history. For that to happen, all of the Bills’ offensive weapons, including Hollins, will have to be firing on all cylinders over the next several weeks.