Retired former Philadelphia Eagles All-Pro center turned ESPN analyst Jason Kelce addressed a viral controversy that took place over the weekend during the opening segment of Monday Night Countdown live from Arrowhead Stadium.
Kelce, 36, was seen smashing a person's phone after they yelled a slur about his brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, while referencing his relationship with pop superstar Taylor Swift on the campus of Penn State University Saturday (November 2).
"I think everybody's seen on social media everything that took place this week. Listen, I'm not happy with anything that took place," Kelce said. "I'm not proud of it and in a heated moment I chose to greet hate with hate and I just don't think that's a productive thing."
The incident took place after the elder Kelce made an appearance on ESPN's College GameDay. A video showed Jason walking among a group of fans as one person yelled a gay slur about Travis.
An alternate angle showed Jason grab the phone from the man who was standing behind him and angrily smash it on the ground. Another clip showed the elder Kelce yelling "who's the [slur] now" back at the person after smashing the phone.
Many social media users sided with Kelce after the incident took place. The former All-Pro center was officially announced to join ESPN in May, two months after announcing his retirement. Kelce is one of the most celebrated players in Eagles history, starting at center in all 193 games of his 13-year NFL career, including the franchise's lone Super Bowl victory in Super Bowl LII, while being selected as a first-team All-Pro six times (2017-19, 2021-23) and Pro Bowler seven times (2014, 2016, 2019-23).
Travis Kelce famously revealed that he attempted to give Swift a friendship bracelet with his phone number when he attended her concert at Arrowhead Stadium prior to their relationship last summer. Swift later said that the three-time Super Bowl champion "very adorably put me on blast" when he acknowledged the situation on his New Heights podcast, which she said "was metal as hell" while being featured as Time Magazine's 'Person of the Year' in December 2023.