Harrison Butker proved that a little controversy can be good for business.
The Kansas City Chiefs kicker, who drew outrage for his inflammatory commencement address earlier this year, sold more NFL-licensed gear this spring than teammate Travis Kelce.
Butker, 29, ranked No. 11 on the NFL Players Association’s player sales list, released Tuesday, September, 17, which tracked sales of adult and youth game jerseys, T-shirts, hoodies, bobbleheads, pet products and more between March 1 and May 31.
Kelce, 34, ranked one spot below Butker at No. 12.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes came in at No. 2, behind top seller C.J. Stroud, quarterback for the Houston Texans.
Butker appeared on the list for the first time, becoming just the second placekicker in history to rank inside the top 50, following the Cincinnati Bengals’ Evan McPherson in 2022.
During his speech at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas on May 11, Butker called on women to embrace the role of “homemaker” and equated Pride Month to a “deadly sin.”
Butker alleged that “diabolical lies” are told to modern-day women, arguing, “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.”
A Change.org petition to have Butker dismissed from the team garnered over 260k signatures. Instead, the Chiefs gave Butker with a new four-year, $26.5 million contract in August, making him the highest-paid kicker in NFL history.
Elsewhere on the list, the Detroit Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson and Amon-Ra St. Brown and the Bengals’ Joe Burrow rounded out the top five, in that order.
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On the success of their run to the NFC Championship Game last season, Hutchinson jumped 15 spots from the year-end list, while St. Brown leapt a massive 29 spots.
The rest of the 10 included, in order, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs, Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy.
Also of note, New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers ranked No. 13, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen ranked No. 16, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson ranked No. 18 and Lions quarterback Jared Goff ranked No. 19.
While Mahomes missed out on the top spot overall, he did top the list for highest-selling Fathead wall decal, bobblehead, puzzle, custom sandals, poster and socks.
