Spoilers for this season of The Bachelorette ahead. It hasn't even aired yet, but it already might be the most dramatic season ever: Tayshia Adams will replace Clare Crawley as this upcoming season's The Bachelorette, if reports are to be believed. It's the first time that's happened in show history, and the news has sent Bachelor Nation into absolute overdrive. We're all collectively wondering: What happened?? According to E!, Crawley quit the show for a contestant named Dale Moss. Although no details have been verified by Crawley, Moss, or ABC, there's some compelling evidence that she and Moss are together now—and may even be engaged.
In the aftermath of the news that Crawley left the show, a source talking to E! explained, "The producers have told her that the season will still lead with Clare and her short-lived journey, and will show Clare falling in love with one of her suitors...Clare will then conclude her journey and announce that Tayshia is the lead."
There's evidence Moss and Crawley talked before the show.
According to a source talking to People, the potential new couple did not, in fact, have the shortest courtship in show history (the show had only been airing a few weeks before news broke that Crawley had quit), but did find a way to chat with each other before the show.
"One of her potential guys found a way to get in touch with her and they began talking...By the time filming officially began, they were basically already in love. No one else stood a chance. It just became so obvious from her subsequent few dates that her heart wasn’t in it and she just wasn’t feeling it. Then she said she wanted out."
This is quite interesting, considering that this is usually prohibited between cast and lead. There are exceptions to this—in a random coincidence, Kelley Flanagan met Peter Weber at a wedding they were both invited to, months before their season started filming—but it's the exception rather than the rule.
It's also worth noting, though, that Moss and Crawley joined one of the crazier seasons in show history. I realize that's been said a lot over the course of the franchise, but the pandemic forced contestants to quarantine and they're essentially shooting from a closed set—this, after the season was delayed for months. Back in March, Bachelor spoilers speculated there might not even BE a Bachelorette this year. So the theory is that the two started talking then because they were hoping to get to know each other even if the season didn't happen. Which, I mean, that feels organic—right??
Moss is a former NFL player.
Moss hails from South Dakota and played football for South Dakota State University as well as a practice squad player for the NFL; His bio says he played with the Green Bay Packers, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Chicago Bears. According to Life & Style, he “obviously loves working out, sports, of course, and anything involving health and fitness. He’s very cautious about what he eats and likes to try new healthy things. He also loves dogs.” According to his Instagram, he's a Special Olympics global ambassador and does other philanthropic work, per his website.
Moss is also a model!
Lots more photos at his website, but the man is gorgeous. He's modeled for Hugo Boss, Grey Goose, and John Varvatos, among others. Moss' Instagram is private, but he's already at 120k followers (and I imagine that number will absolutely grow). He calls himself a "entertainment host and media personality" and says that in addition to modeling he's "executive producing and providing creative direction to global brands such as Under Armour, Hugo Boss, Express, United Airlines and media outlets such as Vayner Media & One37pm."
He's already made appearances at film after-parties and NYFW:
Moss was in a long-term relationship with golfer Seema Sadekar.
Before coming on the show, Moss dated golfer Seema Sadekar. “When I met him, they had just broken up," explained an insider. "My impression was he always wanted to get back with her. When it comes to girls, she’s the one he would talk about the most.” The relationship was apparently "serious" but the two had broken up by the time Moss was tapped to be on the show.
Early spoilers pointed towards Moss being important.
Two initial theories were posited when news first broke: First, that Crawley was being "difficult" (eyeroll), or that she was already in love with Moss and wanted to stop being The Bachelorette in order to pursue him.
Fans, and show spoilers, argued that Crawley and Moss must have had contact before the show started—their connection couldn't be that fast, right? They must have slid into each others' DMs? After all, Crawley's season was delayed indefinitely for the pandemic and only restarted filming in July. If the rumors are true, Crawley was only Bachelorette for two weeks before she (allegedly) told producers she didn't want to be on the show anymore.
Are Crawley and Moss...engaged??
According to Life & Style, yes—but there's no official word yet. Watch this space—we'll update when we know more.
