The 2024 NFL Honors Awards are underway, and host Keegan-Michael Key has drawn plenty of laughter as his opening monologue took shots at several big names in the league.
Keegan-Michael Key Has Hilarious Opening Monologue at NFL Honors
Key is hosting NFL Honors for the third time, having previously hosted the 2021 show in Los Angeles and 2017 in Houston.
Key is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer and was a co-creator and co-star in the sketch series Key & Peele with director and actor Jordan Peele.
In addition to the hit show, Key is also known for his time spent on Mad TV, as well as roles in films such as Horrible Bosses 2 and Pitch Perfect 2.
Key is a huge football fan and has continuously stayed around the game, whether it be in his personal life or in how he intertwines the game into his work.
As he took the stage Thursday, the comedian drew plenty of laughter.
Keegan-Michael Key's #NFLHonors monologue 😂 @KeeganMKey
📺: #NFLHonors on CBS & NFLN
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/quhu9JB4AO— NFL (@NFL)
Of course, Key started out by mentioning one of the biggest storylines in the NFL today — the romance between Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift.
“I think they’re both great, and I’m happy for them,” Key said. “But Travis Kelce, you know this isn’t the first time a player has dated a singer. There’s Russell [Wilson] and Ciara. There was Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson. And, of course, there was Peyton Manning and Brad Paisley.”
“It’s my understanding that Taylor Swift is in Tokyo right now. But the only person further from the Super Bowl is the Carolina Panthers,” joked Key.
He carried on with the Swift jokes as he took a shot at the New England Patriots and coach Bill Belichick.
“Who would’ve thought that Taylor Swift would’ve gone to more playoff games than Bill Belichick?,” he added of the famed former Patriots coach, who stepped down last month after an extremely disappointing 4-13 season.
Key even took shots at his favorite team, the Detroit Lions, and joked about how their historic season came to a very disappointing end. He tacked on a joke about Brock Purdy’s low salary.
“The Lions had a truly historic year, and they made it all the way to the first half of the NFC Championship,” he said. “That game, by the way, was the most expensive Conference Championship ever, with tickets averaging $2,000. For context, that is double Brock Purdy’s salary.”
While talking about the hype revolving around Joe Flacco this season, referring to it as “Flacco Fever,” Key took a shot at Aaron Rodgers.
“Flacco Fever is also something Aaron Rodgers is not vaccinated against,” Key said.
To finish things off, Key had to throw in a joke about Jason Kelce and his viral shirtless moment from the Chiefs’ recent playoff game against the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round.
MORE: Did Keegan-Michael Key Play in the NFL?
“All I ask of everybody is that you gamble responsibly — this town can be rough, I’ll tell you,” Key said. “Jason Kelce’s been here one day and already lost his shirt.”
The monologue was just the beginning of one of the biggest nights in the NFL as many prestigious awards are given out throughout the evening, including NFL MVP.
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