Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid Make First Comments on Harrison Butker’s Speech

The Chiefs' quarterback and coach weighed in on Harrison Butker's controversial commencement speech.

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes warms up before a game in 2023. / Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and coach Andy Reid addressed the controversial comments made by kicker Harrison Butker during his commencement speech at Benedictine College earlier this month.

"When you're in the locker room, there's a lot of people from a lot of different areas of life and they have a lot of different views on everything and we're not always going to agree," Mahomes said Wednesday during a press conference [via ESPN's Courtney Cronin]. "And there's certain things that he said that I don't necessarily agree with, but I understand the person that he is and he is trying to do whatever he can to lead people in the right direction. And that might not be the same values as I have, but at the same time I'm going to judge him by the character that he shows every single day. That's a great person and we'll continue to move along and try to help build each other up to make ourselves better every single day.

"But at the end of the day we're going to come together as a team and I think that'll help out as eliminating those distractions outside of the building as well."

Reid had a similar reaction Wednesday when asked about Butker's comments.

"I didn't talk to him about this. I didn't think I needed to," Reid told reporters. "We're a microcosm of life here. Different religions, different races. We all get along; we all respect each other's opinions. And not necessarily do we go by those. But we respect everybody to have a voice."

Pretty much exactly what I expected coach Andy Reid to say about Harrison Butkers comments. NFL locker rooms are a melting pot of people from all walks of life. pic.twitter.com/bhEKYYUtlD

— Lexi (@lexiosborne) May 22, 2024

Butker, who has been the Chiefs' kicker since he was signed in 2017, caught plenty of flak for his comments during his commencement speech at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. During the 20-minute speech, Butker denounced abortion rights, Pride Month and recommended that women embrace the "vocation" of being a homemaker.

"I want to speak directly to you briefly because I think it is you, the women, who have had the most diabolical lies told to you," Butker said during the speech. "How many of you are sitting here now about to cross the stage, and are thinking about all the promotions and titles you're going to get in your career? Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world. But I would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world."

Those comments went viral and received plenty of backlash. Additionally, they were rejected by an order of nuns affiliated with Benedictine College.