A brief review of Jason Kelce’s first late night television episode
We are now two episodes into this so it feels appropriate to give some reaction to the first two episodes of Jason Kelce’s They Call It Late Night. Jason has had a surge in popularity that really started locally with his legendary Super Bowl speech in 2017 and has grown nationally since he started the New Heights podcast with his brother Travis. Since retiring in 2023, Jason also became a part of the Monday Night Football crew. Being Taylor Swift’s potential brother-in-law I’m sure carries some weight as well. Kelce was somehow able to ride his wave of popularity into an ESPN late night show that aired for the first time two weeks ago. There are a handful of takeaways from the show that are both positive and negative.
They Call It Late Night: A First for the Sports World
For the record, the majority of the criticism is tied to the fact that Jason has never done this before. No athlete really has for that matter. It was fun seeing the Ohioan turned Philly native get to host a Philly-centric show although it does feel like we are almost getting too much Kelce as of late. The show being filmed at Union Transfer gave it a super intimate vibe with a nice Philly touch. The set design and wardrobe were absolutely on point for the style of show they wanted to have. It felt like you were in a 1990s midwest basement. The opening monologue of the first episode was rough. You could tell it was his first time doing something like this and it even appeared unclear if he was reading a script or just speaking. Jason is very natural on his recorded podcast with his brother and as an analyst. He has had cameras in his face for the past 13+ years so this could be a skill he learns over time.
Unlike other late night shows, They Call It Late Night is rated R as there is a fair amount of cursing from everyone involved. The improvement from episode one to episode two was already dramatic. It was nice to see Kylie Kelce also have a role in the show as she feeds off Jason incredibly well. They have great on-screen chemistry, which you’d hope since they are married. Her being replaced with Beau Allen, due to an illness, in episode two was a very funny bit that played throughout the show.
What Worked
To start the first episode there was a fun bit with a woman in the crowd during the monologue to build on the fact that this show was filmed in Philly. The bit with the Jason Kelces of the past and future was unhinged enough to be funny. Overall the bits were okay. The opening segment in episode two involving Dan Campbell’s “brother” Ran Campbell who gave out game sanders instead of game balls was very good. They didn’t feel any more cringy or stupid than any other late night bit out there. The show appears to conclude each night with a competition of sorts. Week one was a beer-chugging event and this week was a jug catch while the contestants were in mascot outfits. Both were fun, while definitely a mess. The inclusion of SNACKTIME was great as well. Love to see Jason highlight local, Philly music.
The best segment of both shows by far has been the panel/interview segments. Last week Jason had Charles Barkley, Lil’ Dickey, and Brian Baldinger on and this week he had Michelle Beisner-Buck and Joe Buck on. It remains to be seen how a late night show hosted by Jason Kelce will turn out, but Kelce hosting the 2025 version of The Best Damn Sports Show with a rotating cast of guests discussing sports and life is absolutely a winning formula. You could also tell that is when Jason feels the most comfortable. Like a true offensive lineman, he played his best when he had his teammates around him.
The conversations feel like they stayed on topic despite jumping around to multiple conversation pieces. Kelce with his guests will be the best part of this show moving forward. As a fourth wall break here, I watched the Youtube edit of the show which aired Jason and company answering questions from the crowd during what appeared to be commercial breaks or when they had to readjust the set. This was incredible content as those answers, especially from Charles Barkley, were off the cuff and original.
Does a Sports Theme Late Night Show Have the Legs to Last
The longevity of They Call It Late Night might be in jeopardy as the ratings were very poor, but for now, it is a unique experiment to see just how popular Kelce truly is. Ratings are a skewed metric as most people saw this on Youtube or ESPN+, but at the time of this being posted, the first two episodes have a combined 400,000 views on YouTube in the ten days since the show started. The show aired incredibly late at night (1 am) which doesn’t help the ratings, but also we kind of live in a post-ratings world where those types of things aren’t the ultimate indicators of success. National sports shows are tough though.
Sports are very siloed with alliances to specific teams and sports. Why would a Dallas Cowboys or New York Giants fan watch a late night show hosted by a guy who whooped their asses for thirteen seasons? Even within fanbases, the interest is segregated even more with some people preferring legacy media outlets and others preferring podcasts. Some like to be angry, others like to crunch numbers, and some just like to spread positivity and use sports as an escape. Kelce’s late night show in certain ways stumbled out of the gate, but that was to be expected. He is a man doing something he’s never done before for a type of show that has never been tried before in a format that is difficult to execute. That being said, the dramatic increase in quality from episodes one to two is promising. For me personally, I have never found late night television all that interesting, but I felt Jason’s show was just as good as any other late night show. Jason has an earnestness to him that really does make him loveable. It will be very interesting to see Kelce grow into the role as the weeks progress and what becomes of his late night career.
What have you thought about They Call It Late Night with Jason Kelce? Let us know in the comments or on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or TikTok.
