Pat McAfee Called Out Jason Kelce for a Very Silly Mistake During ESPN’s ‘MNF’ Broadcast

ESPN broadcasters Pat McAfee and Jason Kelce talked some football during Monday night’s game between the Bears and Eagles. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Welcome to football-watching in America in 2026, when halftime shows are run by two of the most, er, bro-ey broadcasters employed by the Worldwide Leader in Sports: Pat McAfee and Jason Kelce.

If you’re not a fan of either of them, too bad. They’ve carved out their respective man-cave-sized holes on ESPN’s NFL broadcast coverage and are here to stay for the foreseeable future. Viewers at home got a sizable helping of the two of them working together alongside Scott Van Pelt during the halftime show of Monday Night Football between the Bears and Eagles, and it was pretty much what you’d expect. A couple of dudes talking about football.

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But there was a moment in the broadcast when McAfee half-jokingly called out his coworker for something that was really quite silly in retrospect.

The Eagles were trailing the Bears 7-10 at the half, and Kelce, a former Philly center, gave his candid thoughts on what the Birds needed to do to get back into the game:

“It’s an incredible first half from the Bears. If I’m Philadelphia, I’m looking at it, it’s 10–7, I feel pretty good going into the half,” Kelce said on ESPN. “We played really well offensively, we had opportunities, we shot ourselves in the foot, but we’ve moved the ball, we ran the ball well. Jalen Hurts is throwing the ball well. I think them getting the ball coming out of the half, I’ve got a feeling they got a lot of momentum going their way.”

Immediately following Kelce’s spiel, McAfee jumped on something the Eagles' legend kept repeating: the word “we.”

“A lot of ‘we’ talk from Jason for Philly,” McAfee told Van Pelt. “We are the Chicago Bears. We are very pumped with how Case Keenum’s operating this offense.”

That elicited a bashful apology from Kelce, who clearly didn’t mean to suggest he was part of this year’s Eagles squad. Watch that exchange between Kelce and McAfee below:

A lot of WE talk @JasonKelce 😂😂 pic.twitter.com/zt4M01Hv03

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 29, 2026

Kelce’s podcast, New Heights, also got in on the fun and posted a classic meme in reaction to McAfee’s call-out:

😂😂😂 https://t.co/ty0mT1ySnk pic.twitter.com/uMkEEIWMa4

— New Heights (@newheightshow) September 29, 2026

Kelce retired in March 2024 after an illustrious 13-season career with the Eagles, winning his lone Super Bowl in his 2017 campaign. Philly is the only NFL home the seven-time Pro Bowler has ever known, and it makes a lot of sense as to why Kelce would still associate himself with the franchise, even if he’s obviously no longer an active player. The 38-year-old remains very close with his former teammates and coaches, and he notably visited Eagles’ training camp this past offseason to watch practices and mentor the offensive linemen.

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“Got to go down there, learn a little bit of [the Eagles’ new offense under OC Sean Mannion],” Kelce said of his informal Eagles’ camp participation on New Heights. “... It was cool. And then obviously [Chris] Kuper, the new offensive line coach, Coach Kup, hearing how they teach things, the different techniques and this type of system, all that stuff. And then being able to help guys in any way I could.”

It's no secret Kelce’s love for his former team runs deep. And yes, that means here and there the ESPN analyst may absent-mindedly refer to the Eagles as though he were still playing with them. That’s no crime, and McAfee really didn’t need to call him out on breaking broadcasting’s so-called golden rule, even if he did so partly in jest. It was just an honest mistake—let it go.

The Eagles perhaps could have used more of Kelce’s veteran leadership and pep talks, as Jalen Hurts & Co. ended up going scoreless in the second half. Bears backup quarterback Case Keenum lifted his team to a decisive 27–7 win at home, finishing with two passing touchdowns as well as a rushing touchdown thanks to one of Ben Johnson’s clever play-calls. Hurts, meanwhile, threw for 153 yards and no touchdowns and logged a costly interception late in the third quarter that helped seal the game for Chicago.

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