Jason Kelce’s former Eagles teammate has some thoughts on the Penn State fan incident

Jason Kelce has apologized for his part in an altercation with a fan before Penn State’s game against Ohio State last weekend, but at least one of his former Philadelphia teammates says he shouldn’t have done it.

For those who missed it, Kelce was in attendance at ESPN Game Day before Saturday’s big game. A video showed him walking near Beaver Stadium, accompanied by a crowd of fans. A voice can clearly be heard behind Kelce shouting, “Hey Kelce, how does it feel to know your brother is a (homophobic slur) with Taylor Swift?”

Kelce stopped, turned around and walked back to a young man in a Penn State hoodie – it’s not clear from the video that he was the person shouting the insult, but Kelce appears to believe he was the perpetrator – who followed him and filmed with him on a telephone. A second video You can clearly see Kelce taking a cell phone from this person, knocking it onto the asphalt, then picking it up and walking away with it.

A third video from TMZ shows the fan following Kelce to get his phone. He can clearly be heard saying, “Give me my phone, Kelce,” while seemingly pushing Kelce from behind, causing him to lose his footing.

Kelce showed up and repeatedly asked the Penn State fan, “Who’s the (gay slur) now?” Someone moved up to separate them and told the fan, “Get rid of the slur,” as Kelce continued.

Former Eagles defensive end Chris Long spoke about the incident during a podcast appearancee recently and he had some interesting things to say.

“I think the world now is all about influence,” he said. “Period. Even as a member of the media, it’s hard not to fall into these traps. Everyone is looking for influence. It’s the quickest way to get my five minutes of fame. That guy who was slapped with the phone wouldn’t be there , as if the whole internet hadn’t turned against this guy… Nowadays, kids who get slapped might say, “Hey, look what I did.” “I got punched in the face by Jason Kelce.”

“Internet culture has ruined real life and there are too many people who grew up in situations where they never got punched in the face,” he continued. “And I’m not saying that’s a requirement for being an adult, but I’m pretty sure that guy never got punched in the face.”

Kelce apologized for his role in the incident before Monday Night Countdown on ESPN.

“I think everyone on social media saw everything that happened this week,” the Philadelphia Eagles legend said. “I just want to… listen, I’m not happy with anything that happened. I’m not proud of it. In a heated moment I decided to answer hate with hate and I just don’t think that’s the way it is.” I don’t think it leads to discourse and that it’s the right way to approach things. I think The bottom line is that I try to live my life by the golden rule.

“That’s what I was always taught,” he added. “I try to treat people with decency and respect and I will continue to do that, even though I didn’t succeed this week, I will continue to do that and will continue to do so.”