Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker still stands by his controversial commencement speech almost one year on from the outrage that followed.
Butker, who is gearing up for his third straight Super Bowl appearance with the Chiefs this weekend in New Orleans, drew fierce criticism when he addressed graduates at Kansas’ Benedictine College in May of last year.
As well as appearing to condemn then-president Joe Biden’s pro-abortion stance and the LGBTQ+ community, the NFL star divided opinion by suggesting women should prioritize being stay-at-home mothers and raising families over pursuing careers of their own.
A number of fans and high-profile figures expressed anger over the remarks, with a petition for the Chiefs to cut him from their roster eventually receiving almost 250,000 signatures.
Even some of his teammates, including Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, publicly admitted they do not share the same views as their outspoken colleague.
Yet despite the backlash it caused, Butker says he has no regrets over the speech nine months later.
Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker still stands by his controversial commencement speech last year
Butker divided opinion when he addressed graduates at Benedictine College in May 2024
‘God has given me this platform and I’m going to say what I believe to be true and what I hold close to my heart,’ he said on the opening night of Super Bowl week in New Orleans.
‘Anything that comes, I’m blessed to be on the Chiefs and be in another Super Bowl.’
While they distanced themselves from his opinions, Butker still received support from the likes of Kelce and Mahomes, along with Kansas City head coach Andy Reid.
All three defended the Chiefs kicker despite the fact they do not hold the same opinions.
‘I’ve known [Harrison] for seven years and I judge him by the character that he shows every single day. And that that’s a good person,’ said Mahomes.
‘I’ve known him for even plus years,’ Kelce stressed on his New Heights podcast at the time. ‘I cherish him as a teammate. I think Pat [Mahomes] said it best where he is every bit of a great person and a great teammate.’
Reid, meanwhile, said the team respected his opinion while adding that he did not believe he was attacking women.
‘A lot of guys had different opinions about it,’ Butker continued on Monday night, ‘but we all love each other in that locker room. We all know who we are.
‘All the guys understood where I was coming from. They respect me. They respect what I have to say. And I have nothing to apologize for.’
Butker and the Chiefs are bidding to become the first team in NFL history to win a three straight Super Bowls on Sunday night.
Standing in their way of a famous three-peat are the Philadelphia Eagles, who they also got the better of in the 2023 showpiece.
