Who are the People and Top Celebrities that are really backing the Chiefs kicker over his controversial ‘homemaker’ speech? – Here’s the full list so far

Harrison Butker sparked outrage in a controversial appearance at Benedictine College earlier this month – but not everyone has a problem with the Kansas City Chiefs kicker.

While addressing graduates at the college, Butker made headlines after suggesting women are more excited to be homemakers than successful careerists, taking aim at the LGBTQ+ community and slamming President Joe Biden’s stance on abortion.

The three-time Super Bowl winner has been heavily criticized over the remarks, with a petition calling for the Chiefs to part company with him now receiving over 225,000 signatures.

However, Butker has also been defended by a number of high-profile names – including his Kansas City teammate Travis Kelce.

So who else has come out in support of him? Dailymail.com takes a closer look.

Chiefs Kingdom

Kelce became the latest member of Chiefs Kingdom to launch a defense of Butker this week after standing up for his teammate against the cancel-culture backlash.

Speaking on the latest episode of his and brother Jason’s New Heights podcast, the Kansas City tight end said: ‘I’ve known him for even plus years. I cherish him as a teammate. I think Pat (Mahomes) said it best where he is every bit of a great person and a great teammate.

‘He’s treated family and family that I’ve introduced to him with nothing but respect and kindness. And that’s how he treats everyone.

‘When it comes down to his views and what he said at the Saint Benedict’s commencement speech, those are his. I can’t say I agree with the majority of it or just about any of it outside of just him loving his family and his kids.

‘And I don’t think that I should judge him by his views, especially his religious views, of how to go about life, that’s just not who I am.’

Several other Kansas City figures leapt to Butker’s defense, including head coach Andy Reid.

‘Everybody is from different areas, different religions, different races, and so we all get along, we all respect each other’s opinions,’ Reid said.

‘It’s a great thing about America, man,’ he continued. ‘And we’re just, like I said, a microcosm of that and my wish is that everybody could kind of follow that.’

‘I don’t think he was speaking ill to women, but he has his opinions and we all respect that. I let (the media) in this room and you have a lot of opinions that I don’t like.’

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, meanwhile, was quick to highlight Butker’s positive persona behind closed doors.

Amid the backlash to his commencement speech, Mahomes insisted his teammate is a ‘good person’ and that he will continue to judge him on his character alone.

‘I’ve known [Harrison] for seven years and I judge him by the character that he shows every single day. And that that’s a good person,’ he said about Butker.

‘That’s someone who cares about the people around him, cares about his family, and wants to make a good impact in society,’ Mahomes added.

Defensive tackle Chris Jones also wrote to Butker on X: ‘I love you @buttkicker7! My brotha’.

As well as his teammates and head coach, Butker has also received support from Tavia and Gracie Hunt – the wife and daughter of Kansas City owner Clark Hunt.

Tavia, who married the Chiefs CEO back in 1993, took to Instagram to highlight the importance of motherhood and stress that a person sharing a different point of view ‘doesn’t make them hateful’.

‘Affirming motherhood and praising your wife, as well as highlighting the sacrifice and dedication it takes to be a mother, is not bigoted. It is empowering to acknowledge that a woman’s hard work in raising children is not in vain,’ she said.

‘Countless highly educated women devote their lives to nurturing and guiding their children. Someone disagreeing with you doesn’t make them hateful; it simply means they have a different opinion.’
Amid the backlash to his commencement speech, Mahomes insisted his teammate is a ‘good person’ and that he will continue to judge him on his character alone.

‘I’ve known [Harrison] for seven years and I judge him by the character that he shows every single day. And that that’s a good person,’ he said about Butker.

‘That’s someone who cares about the people around him, cares about his family, and wants to make a good impact in society,’ Mahomes added.

Defensive tackle Chris Jones also wrote to Butker on X: ‘I love you @buttkicker7! My brotha’.

As well as his teammates and head coach, Butker has also received support from Tavia and Gracie Hunt – the wife and daughter of Kansas City owner Clark Hunt.

Tavia, who married the Chiefs CEO back in 1993, took to Instagram to highlight the importance of motherhood and stress that a person sharing a different point of view ‘doesn’t make them hateful’.

‘Affirming motherhood and praising your wife, as well as highlighting the sacrifice and dedication it takes to be a mother, is not bigoted. It is empowering to acknowledge that a woman’s hard work in raising children is not in vain,’ she said.

‘Countless highly educated women devote their lives to nurturing and guiding their children. Someone disagreeing with you doesn’t make them hateful; it simply means they have a different opinion.’

Bill Maher
Butker also has a number of supporters outside of Kansas City, including late-night political talk show host Bill Maher.

During his show ‘Real Time with Bill Maher’, Maher came to the NFL player’s side despite admitting he does not agree with his views, claiming the backlash was undeserved.

‘I can’t express how much this guy is not like me,’ he said about Butker. ‘He’s religious. He loves marriage. He loves kids… And he’s now history’s greatest monster.’

‘Again, I don’t agree with much with this guy, but I don’t get the thing. He said… “Some of you may go on to lead successful careers in the world.” Ok, that seems fairly, like, modern,’ Maher continued.

‘”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.” I don’t see what the big crime is. I really don’t.

‘And I think this is part of the problem people have with the left is that lots of people in this country are like this. Like he’s saying some of you may go on to lead successful careers, but a lot of you are excited about this other way that people- everybody used to be. And now can’t that be a choice too?’

‘And I feel like they feel very put upon, like there’s only one way to be a good person and that’s to get an advanced degree from one of those a*****e factories like Harvard.’

Whoopi Goldberg
The View host Whoopi Goldberg joined Maher in sticking up for Butker, arguing that the comments were ‘his beliefs and he’s welcome to them.’

Opening an edition of the ABC daytime show, the Sister Act star said: ‘The NFL released a statement that he gave this speech in his personal capacity and… the NFL does not share his views. So, you know, listen, I like when people say what they say. He is a staunch Catholic, these are his beliefs and he’s welcome to them.

‘I don’t have to believe them, I don’t have to accept them, the ladies in the audience do not have to accept them. The same way we want respect when Colin Kaepernick takes a knee, we want to give respect to people whose ideas are different from ours.’

Referring to Donald Trump, Whoopi continued: ‘Because the man who says he wants to be President, you-know-who, he says the way to act is take away people’s right to say how they feel. We don’t want to be that, we don’t want to be those people.

‘So I’m okay with him saying whatever he says and the women who were sitting there, if they take his advice, good for them, they’ll be happy. If they don’t, good for them, they’ll be happy in a different way – that’s my attitude.’

Jason Kelce
Echoing the sentiments of his brother Travis, Jason Kelce also defended Butker’s right to freedom of speech despite admitting he does not share the Chiefs kicker’s views.

The retired Philadelphia Eagles legend said about the controversy on New Heights: ‘It’s always great to hear from people who really actually know people than a bunch of people reacting to comments without really having met the guy.

‘I think the teammates’ reactions, Andy Reid’s reaction – you learn about people on a daily basis. There are always going to be opinions that everybody shares that you are going to disagree with.

‘Make no mistake about it, the things he said in the commencement speech are not things that I align myself with. But he’s giving a commencement speech at a Catholic university and shocker, it ended up being a very religious speech.

‘To me, I can listen to somebody talk and take great value in it when he is talking about the importance of family and the importance of a great mother – while also acknowledging that not everybody has to be a homemaker if that’s not what they want to do in life.

‘When you listen to somebody, you take in what you like and you listen to other things and say I don’t f***ing like that.

‘I’ve had so many people ask me what would you do if your daughters had to sit there and listen to someone tell them after they have just earned a degree that they should just go and align to be homemakers.

‘I would say that if my daughters listen to someone tell them what to do, that they should be homemakers, I failed as a dad.’

Kelce also made a joke at wife Kylie’s expense after revealing she was left ‘frustrated’ by Butker’s comments.

‘Women in particular, obviously my wife… I think she was a little bit frustrated with some of these comments,’ he added.

‘Initially I said listen, you’re gonna have to go back in the kitchen and make me a sandwich. I’m listening to the game right now.’

Patricia Heaton
Two-time Emmy winner Patricia Heaton expressed her confusion at the outrage over Butker’s remarks, highlighting that the Kansas City star was afforded a standing ovation at Benedictine College.

The actress and film producer said in a video on Instagram: ‘I don’t understand why everyone’s knickers are in a twist. He gave a commencement speech, the audience applauded twice during the speech and gave him a standing ovation at the end.’

Heaton, who appeared in the clip donning a ballcap and zip-up sweater in front of a workout machine, said the audience at the commencement ‘enjoyed what he was saying.’

‘So what? It’s his opinion – he can have one,’ she said. ‘He’s not a monster for stating what he believes.

‘He went after bishops much more than he went after women, or what women’s choices are, or what he thinks they should be – so, I don’t understand.’

Heaton, who played the role of Debra Barone on 210 episodes of Everybody Loves Raymond, cited her own faith in pledging his support for the kicker.

‘I am a Catholic woman, who worked through my kids’ childhood and I believe God opened those doors for me,’ Heaton said. ‘Thankfully, it was a schedule that allowed me to also be a full-time mom, basically.

‘I find nothing offensive about what he said, even though my life is very different and he might even look at my life and say that’s not the way it should be – that’s okay – that’s his opinion.’

Sage Steele
As the uproar over Butker’s speech continues, former ESPN anchor Sage Steele has opened up on her ‘sadness’ at the criticism that has come his way in recent weeks.

Steele, who left ESPN in August after settling a lawsuit against the network, ranted about the controversy in a lengthy video clip on X, taking aim at the NFL for distancing itself from Butker’s comments.

‘I am so saddened at the criticism that comes this man’s way just because he voiced his opinion,’ she said. ‘It doesn’t mean you have to agree with everything that he said.

‘Diversity of thought, I’ve been preaching that since long before I left ESPN and I will never stop preaching it because that’s what’s right – diversity of thought.

‘By the way, I didn’t agree with everything Harrison Butker said. I know women, women who are close friends of mine, who actually are quite content in life without having kids. Whether it was their specific choice, they didn’t want to become a mother, or they couldn’t and are now at peace with it, I know women can be quite content without being a mother.’

Steele then added: ‘Why are we judging one person based on his opinion? Why did the NFL feel the need to release a statement saying they don’t align with Harrison’s views?

‘Like, why? We know that. You’re a league with thousands of people, of course you’re not going to be on the same page.’

She eventually concluded: ‘I’m just saddened at all of the negativity towards him.’