“You Don’t Fit in a Minivan”: Ryan Fitzpatrick Explains to Jason Kelce the Fallout of Becoming a Dad of Seven Children

One of the most beloved journeymen quarterbacks in recent NFL history, Ryan Fitzpatrick, may not have a championship ring to flash, but he has garnered quite a reputation on the way. From starting as a quarterback for as many as nine different teams to, well, being a father of seven children.

During the latest episode of the Fitz & Whit podcast, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer and Harvard graduate detailed the motivations behind his decision to have so many kids.

After the show’s most recent guest, former Philadelphia Eagle Jason Kelce, asked what the right number of kids was, Fitzpatrick noted that both he and his wife were raised with three siblings. Initially believing four to be the perfect number, the 17-season veteran said that he and his spouse took a “Why not?” approach to having more children after the fourth.

“What’s one more?… Then we got to six and at that point, it was decision time because, when you have seven children, you don’t fit in a minivan. That’s when we had to stop and think… We had to think about six and seven, and I’m irresistible, so I think that’s what happened,” said Fitzpatrick.

Of course, this was not without some headaches. For instance, the family had to buy a 12-passenger van just to get around. Detailing the amount of mess that comes with having such a large family, Fitzpatrick believes that seven kids was a good stopping point.

“I don’t have any say in what the house looks like… When the kids come home from school… there’s 18 shoes on the floor. In the summertime, when we go swimming… and they’ve got a couple friends over and they swim and they bring their towels inside, there’s 14 towels on the floor in the house… It’s not good,” elaborated Fitzpatrick.

Ouch! But he is not alone. There are plenty of other NFL players who can relate to his challenges of dealing with a house full of kids.

NFL players with large families apart from Fitzpatrick

Perhaps the most famous former NFL player to boast a household full of kids is none other than Philip Rivers. The former San Diego Charger has 10 kids. That’s twice as many children than his five playoff wins.

After announcing that his wife was pregnant with their 10th child, fans realized that Rivers now had enough children to field an entire starting lineup for him on offense, leading to the creation of one of the most preposterous starting lineups in NFL Madden history.

The Miami Dolphins’ premiere receiving threat, Tyreek Hill, currently holds the record for most kids among active NFL players. With 10 children, Hill could certainly stand to benefit from reaching out to Rivers for some parental advice.

Former Cincinnati Bengal and co-host of the NightCap podcast, Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson, isn’t far behind them either, having fathered eight children of his own. Suffice to say, there will be no shortage of second-generation talent competing across various sporting leagues in the coming years.