Jason Kelce is much more than just a high-energy guy who makes headlines for shirtless celebrations. Behind the scenes, he leads like a teammate, combining a get-it-done attitude with a down-to-earth personality. He has a unique gift for connecting with everyone in the building, whether they are the team’s biggest stars or players just starting. Now that he has moved into broadcasting at ESPN, he’s bringing that same energy to the Monday Night Football crew. 

His coworker, Mina Kimes, has now shared how much she appreciates his approach with his wife, Kylie Kelce, on Not Gonna Lie with Kylie Kelce. She noted that he doesn’t just act like a “big personality”; he shows up, does the hard work of football analysis, and treats everyone with genuine respect.

“People always ask me, ‘How can men help women?’ because there aren’t that many of us, particularly ones who do my job. And I think your husband is an extremely great example of how you do that, which is just by being freaking normal—just engaging in, like, normal football conversations with me. And it is not about being, you know, a weird, performative ally.”

Mina addressed Kylie’s question about Jason as a colleague because Kylie genuinely feels her husband is the most difficult person to manage in the ESPN booth. Kylie describes him as a total whirlwind of energy with a loud, boisterous personality—so much so that he jokingly calls himself a “Neanderthal” in his daily life. Since he often struggles to stay organized or focused on his own, he relies heavily on Kylie to provide the structure and guidance he needs to stay on track during a broadcast.

Surprisingly, the situation is completely different when he steps into the NFL booth as a professional analyst. In that environment, he is recognized as a dedicated colleague who excels at teamwork and serves as a vital support system for everyone on the broadcast team. But has this current profession taken a toll on his body?

Jason Kelce opens up about his physical health after retiring from the NFL as a player

Even after retiring from the NFL in 2024, Jason Kelce is finding that the physical toll of his 13-year football career follows him everywhere, including the golf course. The former Philadelphia Eagles center, famously known as the “Ironman” for his streak of 156 consecutive starts, is now dealing with the long-term consequences of playing through significant pain. 

Throughout his time in the league, Kelce battled a laundry list of injuries, including a torn ACL in 2012 and a grueling 2018 season where he played through a broken foot, a broken elbow, and a knee injury all at once. By the 2022 season, he was even competing with a torn ligament in his ankle, a body part he now describes as “destroyed” by the rigors of the game.

Now that he has moved into a successful post-retirement career in media, Kelce is being very open about how these old injuries affect his daily life. On a 2025 episode of his New Heights podcast, he shared that his ankles are so weak and inflamed from past NFL games that he struggles to wear standard golf shoes or even perform basic gym workouts like squats. 

“I’m trying to lift weights, straining muscles. My ankle, playing golf last week, is inflamed. I can’t squat now because my ankle hurts. I can’t bench because I sprained my pecs,” he said during a May 2025 episode of his New Heights Podcast. 

He noted that for a player who rarely missed a snap, the sudden breakdown of his body feels incredibly real. 

Despite these physical setbacks, Kelce remains optimistic and active, searching for new ways to manage his joint pain so he can fully enjoy his growing passion for golf and upcoming opportunities in the sport.