NFL players have found creative ways to lose their Super Bowl rings during the league’s history.
Giants long snapper Zak DeOssie once left his rings on top of his car and drove away; Jets center John Schmitt lost his while surfing only to have it returned more than four decades later; and Seahawks fullback Derrick Coleman once left his in a rental car only for agent David Mulugheta to find it and return it to him.
But how Jason Kelce lost his Super Bowl ring may outdo them all. It involves a live podcast recording, a sock and a giant tub of Skyline chili.
Here’s what to know about Kelce’s missing Super Bowl ring and how it became lost to the world.
MORE: ESPN ‘aggressively pursuing’ Jason Kelce for ‘Monday Night Football’ role’
How Jason Kelce lost his Super Bowl ring
Kelce revealed he lost his Super Bowl ring while hosting the inaugural “Lombaby Games” at his alma mater, Cincinnati.
The challenge pitted two teams — one of student-athletes and one of student academics — against one another in a series of challenges. The event preceded Kelce recording the “New Heights” podcast live at the university with his brother, Travis.
One of the challenges involved the competitors working to find a sock full of championship accessories — including Jason’s Super Bowl ring — in two giant vats of Skyline chili. There were “socks with some make-believe rings and then there was actually only one real ring,” according to Jason.
The Lombaby Games was PURE CHAOS … now onto #NewHeightsCincy pic.twitter.com/RjRRBgNLWO
— New Heights (@newheightshow) April 12, 2024
Jason revealed during the podcast that despite endless searching through the chili, spaghetti and cheese, the ring could not be found.
“There was an unfortunate-ness, as you guys know, this game existed because I continuously lose my Super Bowl ring,” Jason explained on the podcast. “And I don’t even know if Travis still knows this, but I legitimately lost my Super Bowl ring in this event.”
The inability to locate the ring was not for lack of trying. At one point, a metal detector was brought in to aid the search.
But still, “they could not find it,” Jason detailed.
“All of this stuff (the chili) has been thrown away so I think we can safely assume my Super Bowl ring is now in a landfill someplace in the Cincinnati-tristate area,” he said. “I didn’t think that would happen.”
But how exactly was the ring lost? The elder Kelce brother theorized the sock the ring was in was inadvertently thrown away during the competition.
“The only thing I can think of is at some point, the sock got kicked out of the three-way and it made its way out of the pool and that it was thrown away in some shape or form,” he said. “But yes, the Super Bowl ring is officially gone.”
Travis didn’t have too much empathy for his brother’s plight.
“You’re a f—ing imbecile,” he told Jason on the show.
MORE: Best highlights, moments from Jason Kelce’s emotional retirement speech
How many Super Bowl rings does Jason Kelce have?
The lost Super Bowl ring was the only one Kelce won during his NFL career. He earned it during the 2018 postseason when the Eagles beat the Patriots 41-33 in Super Bowl 52.
Kelce had another shot at winning a Super Bowl in 2023 when the Eagles played the Chiefs in Super Bowl 57. They couldn’t quite beat the Chiefs, which granted a second Super Bowl win to Jason’s younger brother Travis.
Despite losing the ring, Kelce doesn’t seem too worried about it.
“Somebody at some point messed with my Super Bowl ring, which I’m fine with,” he said. “I mean, it’s just a hunk of metal and I’ll just have another one made, I think? They can do that right?”
Indeed, they can, but Jason is wondering whether his insurance will be willing to fund that.
“I think the insurance company might have some things to say about whether they’re going to cover that,” he said.