Jason Kelce surprises McDonald’s employee with signed Eagles jersey amid NFL retirement rumors
With rumors swirling around his potential NFL retirement, Jason Kelce planned something quite extraordinary on Wednesday morning. Just a day after exiting the NFL Playoffs, the veteran center stopped by his local McDonald's in Broomall — about 30 minutes west of Philadelphia — just to order his routine sausage, egg, and cheese.
Upon pulling up to the drive-thru window, he was greeted by none other than Danielle Bonham, who served the Eagles star on multiple occasions. But what was so special? This time, he decided to do something special for Bonham. Kelce, who spent 13 seasons with the Eagles, winning a Super Bowl title, gifted a signed Kelly Green Eagles jersey for Bonham.
Bonham revealed she was starstruck when Kelce first pulled up to her McDonald's drive-thru window.
"I’m forever grateful and very fortunate to have crossed paths with him as many times as I did, and I just wish him nothing but the best," Bonham told Philadelphia's FOX29.
The jersey is signed by Kelce and is inscribed: “To Danielle … Go Birds! Thank you!"
Jason Kelce's impact on Eagles and Philadelphia highly-appreciated amid retirement rumors
Although Kelce stated that he has yet to retire officially, Philadelphia residents should expect the local star to call time on his storied NFL career. The NFL All-Pro center is a regular in his Pennsylvania community. So when FOX 29 spoke to several businesses in the township, they had nothing but gratitude for Kelce.
"He’s got his footprint all over this town. The flower shop over here, the Wawa, the Kettle down on the boulevard, I mean, he’s all over St. Dennis fair with his kids," Carl Henderson, the owner of Carl's Cards & Collectibles, told the television station. "I’ve seen a lot of athletes come and go, but Jason’s a special dude."
Meanwhile the owner of Crust Pizza and Havertown Grille Nick Haselidis told ABC 6 was invested into knowing community members and business owners by name.
"All the customers know him," Haselidis said. "He knows all the customers by first name. He's just a regular."
According to multiple reports, Kelce told his teammates he’s retiring after the Eagles’ 32-9 loss to the Buccaneers on Monday, but the center rebuffed the reports in the latest episode of his “New Heights” podcast.
“I didn’t announce what I was doing on purpose, despite, I guess, what’s been leaked to the media,” Jason addressed the rumors to his brother Travis.
“I just don’t think you’re in a position after a game like that to really make that decision, I just don’t, there’s too much emotion in the moment, there’s too much going down in the moment to really fully grasp that decision.”
The 13-year veteran has had a storied career after getting drafted in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft. The seven-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl 57 champion's impact goes beyond the football field. He's raised millions of dollars for charity to propel the city of Philadelphia forward and to better the public students' lives in the city.
Now comes the real question - Will Jason Kelce come back for another year or is he done?
As Jason Kelce said it himself on the podcast, the Eagles center will announce "when it's time" to do so. And that is going to be an interesting part of the 2024 NFL offseason we'll have to watch out for.