NFL condemns Harrison Butker’s faith-based commencement speech after Chiefs kicker sparks backlash

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The NFL is distancing itself from the speech Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker gave during a commencement address at a private college in Kansas over the weekend, when he encouraged women graduates to embrace their "vocation" as a "homemaker," and criticized the LGBTQ community and President Biden for his stance on abortion. 

Butker, a three-time Super Bowl champion, has received overwhelming backlash on social media for his comments made during a roughly 20-minute address he gave at Benedictine College over the weekend. 

Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker speaks to the media during NFL football Super Bowl LVIII opening night on Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

In a statement to People magazine, the NFL clarified that Butker spoke from a "personal capacity" and reiterated the league’s stance on inclusion. 

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"Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity," Jonathan Beane, the NFL’s senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, told the outlet. "His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger."

During his speech, Butker encouraged women to embrace what he called the "most important titles of all" as a Catholic. 

"For the ladies present today, congratulations on an amazing accomplishment. You should be proud of all that you have achieved to this point in your young lives," he said. "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.