At the Penn State vs. Ohio State football game, Jason Kelce, the Eagles’ now-retired center, appeared. He was high-fiving and greeting fans until one particular encounter, where a fan approached Kelce and screamed a derogatory comment about his brother, Travis, and Travis’ girlfriend, Taylor Swift. Kelce then turned, grabbed the fan’s phone, and smashed it to the ground. He then picked up the phone, causing the fan to chase him saying, “Give me back my phone.” Kelce repeated the homophobic slur three times back to the fan before security escorted Kelce away.

On ESPN’s “Monday Night Countdown,” Kelce apologized for his actions, stating: “I’m not happy with anything that took place. I’m not proud of it. And you know, in a heated moment, I chose to greet hate with hate. And I just don’t think that that’s a productive thing. I really don’t. . . . [I]n that moment, I fell down to a level that I shouldn’t have. So I think the bottom line is . . .  I try to live my life by the Golden Rule. That’s what I’ve always been taught. I try to treat people with common decency and respect, and I’m going to keep doing that moving forward, even though . . .  I fell short this week. I’m going to do that moving forward and continue to do that.”

On the Kelce Brothers’ New Heights Podcast, Travis shared his thoughts on the incident, as well: “The real situation is that you had some . . . clown come up to you and talk about your family and you reacted in a way that was defending your family.”

The brothers, known for defending each other fiercely, left fans conflicted. Some praised Kelce on social media, describing him as an “icon” for standing up for his family. Others, however, were outraged and disappointed at the star’s behavior. 

The police investigation of the incident hit a roadblock because police could not seem to locate the fan involved. No one has come forward with any tips on the fans identity, and so the face behind the phone continues to remain a mystery to the world.