Jason Kelce’s surprise appearance at WWE WrestleMania 40: Saturday had been in the works for some time, it has been reported.
During the tag-team match pitting Rey Mysterio & Andrade against Santos Escobar & Dominik Mysterio, two masked men helped prevent a steel chair assault on the WWE Hall of Famer. The two men were revealed post-match to be Kelce and Lane Johnson of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Kelce and members of his team reached out to Danny Cage and The Monster Factor for training and to document his journey to WrestleMania 40, Fightful Select reports. Kelce and Lane did not take their role at the show lightly as they trained for hours both in and out of the ring.
The two men were said to be very respectful to everyone they met and the wrestling industry in general. Both also showed interest in returning for further training down the line. WWE and the Philadelphia Eagles posted footage of Lane working out with Seth Rollins during the week. It had also been reported that WWE had reached out to Kelce in the days leading up to WrestleMania.
Football and WrestleMania
Kelce and Lane aren’t the only names from the NFL to make an impression at WWE’s biggest event of the year. At last year’s event, Pat McAfee, a former punter, won his impromptu match with The Miz thanks to interference from George Kittle. The San Francisco 49er was also in attendance at WWE WrestleMania 40: Saturday.
The biggest NFL involvement at WrestleMania came in 1995. At WrestleMania 11, Lawrence ‘LT’ Taylor defeated Bam Bam Bigelow in the show’s main event. The match had been set up in January of that year with an altercation between Taylor and Bigelow at the Royal Rumble.