Despite spending over a decade with the Eagles, Jason Kelce has occasionally been spotted wearing the jerseys of other NFL teams, including the Bills, Steelers, and even the Chiefs. However, seeing him in a Broncos jersey—especially when they’re playing his hometown team, the Cleveland Browns—was unexpected. So, what led the 6-time All-Pro center to sport the Broncos jersey today? Was he rooting for them?
Jason took to X (formerly Twitter) to give the fans an insight into why he wore a Denver jersey. He pointed out that as part of tailgating for the Monday Night Football, he chooses to wear the jerseys of the home team, particularly the great former players of that team.
“Every tailgate I go into Monday Night Football, I wear a jersey honoring a former great of the home team. Tonight I wore Tom Nalen’s jersey as one of the legendary centers of the game and a guy I looked up to and watched when learning the position as an undersized center.”
He explained that it’s his way of honoring the greats of the game for their contribution to the league. Jason honored Abdul Salaam by wearing his jersey to the Jets game. He did the same thing during the Steelers game by wearing the jersey of his good friend, Ryan Clark. For the Chiefs’ home game, he honored Abner Haynes and his contributions to the game.
For the same reason, he wore the Broncos jersey of Tom Nalen. Being an undersized Center himself, Jason looked up to Nalen growing up and watched his tape to improve his game. The Broncos legend too was undersized for the same position.
Every tailgate I go into Monday Night Football, I wear a jersey honoring a former great of the home team. For the Jets I wore Abdul Salaam’s jersey to honor him after his passing as one of the great members of the Sack Exchange. For the Steelers game, I wore my friend and desk… https://t.co/L4KWSQ1pbb pic.twitter.com/IkEq6RheDm
— Jason Kelce (@JasonKelce) December 3, 2024
Fans loved Jason’s explanation and applauded his intentions and expressed their love for him:
Love you Jason! Please don’t ever change. Forever having to unnecessarily explain yourself.
— Antique Swiftie (from the vault) ISO Taycouver tix (@Ancient_Swiftie) December 3, 2024
Another chimed in and added,
Such a great way to honor players of the past!
— Big Bean (@tserof) December 3, 2024
Others stated,
Makes complete sense. Nice job Jason!
— Doug Kyle (@zpco49) December 3, 2024
Despite wearing a Denver jersey, Jason Kelce wasn’t rooting against the Browns. While tailgating, he made it clear that he is supporting Cleveland and is rooting for them to pull off another win.
However, his support wasn’t enough for the Browns as they lost 41-32 to the home team, the Broncos. They are now 3-9 while Denver moves closer to a playoff spot.
