Jason Kelce’s pro football career is done. His podcast career is thriving. And maybe, just maybe, his pro wrestling career is getting started.
WWE’s biggest annual event is WrestleMania, and this weekend, WrestleMania XL is taking place over two nights at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. Many fans expected that the event would feature some Philadelphia sports flavor (reigning NBA MVP Joel Embiid is a huge WWE fan).
Fans got that flavor during the third match of Night 1 on Saturday, as Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson were a part of the show and helped decide the result of a match. The two offensive linemen were influential in the outcome of a tag-team match featuring WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio and his partner Andrade against Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio, Rey’s son who competed against his father at last year’s event.
As Dominik Mysterio tried to use a ringside chair against his opponents Saturday, two large masked men physically prevented the attempt. Johnson, an offensive tackle for Philadelphia and the larger of the two at 6 foot 6 and 325 pounds, ripped the chair from Dominik’s hands, while Kelce, recently retired after 13 seasons playing center with the Eagles, threw him into the ring post, which ultimately led to a win for Rey and Andrade.
PHILLY STRONG.@JasonKelce & @LaneJohnson65 just destroyed @DomMysterio35 at #WrestleMania XL! pic.twitter.com/k2xZdODDHA
— WWE (@WWE) April 7, 2024
After the match, Kelce and Johnson took off their masks — to resounding cheers from the crowd — and celebrated with the victors. Kelce, at 6 foot 3 and nearly 300 pounds, even climbed the turnbuckle and let out a scream for the crowd, a familiar sight at Lincoln Financial Field for Eagles fans.
NFL fans may remember a video of Kelce in a similar luchador mask celebrating after his brother, Travis, won Super Bowl LVIII with the Kansas City Chiefs in February.
jason is hilarious, kylie let him have today 😭 pic.twitter.com/5HFrc6oNW0
— sarah (@tayvischarm) February 12, 2024
NFL stars past and present are no strangers to WWE. San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle has popped up at events from time to time. He also was shown in the WrestleMania XL crowd. Additionally, during his brief first retirement, Rob Gronkowski hosted WrestleMania 36 in 2020. New York Giants legend Lawrence Taylor’s involvement might be the best example of players involved in the show. In 1995, the Hall of Fame linebacker main evented WrestleMania XI, defeating Bam Bam Bigelow.
Kelce and Johnson were part of the offensive line that helped the Eagles win Super Bowl LII, defeating the New England Patriots in Minneapolis.
(Photo of Rey Mysterio and Jason Kelce: Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images)
