Great news: There is a new viral incident of Philadelphia fan idiocy. As a 41-year-old sportswriter who has lived here his entire life, I am as qualified as anyone to explain it. Let’s get into it.
Wow, I’m back! What’s up?
There is yet another story in the news that can only be explained in Q&A format, and everyone else is too sick of my shit to contribute. So I picked you.
Normally I’d take that as an insult, but I think I get what’s happened. How many Philadelphia-related stories are you currently working on?
That’s not important. Hey, did you know they renamed Philadelphia Mills to “Franklin Mall?”
Wait, is that what we’re talking about here? Holy cow! This is big news.
I have never been fully able to explain how big of an event the opening of the mall once known as Franklin Mills to anyone. Milton Glazer did the design. Ella Fitzgerald sang at the opening. Busloads of shoppers came every weekend. It rebranded to Philadelphia Mills, but after a sale the mall had to change its name again. It’s nice to see it back to its roots. I spent most of my preteen years there. But, no, that’s not what this is about.
Gotta be a new Philadelphia Fan Incident, then. Did the guy with the Phanatic bellybutton tattoo rizz someone too much?
No. In the second half of the Eagles' 22-10 home win over the Packers on Sunday, an Eagles fan named Ryan Caldwell began haranguing a pair of Green Bay fans in front of him in the stands. It devolved into an embarrassing tirade. “He’s short of the goal line, you piece of shit!” Caldwell yelled at Ally Keller after she applauded a replay that put the Packers at the Eagles 1-yard line. “You’re not in. It’s not a touchdown, so you don’t jerk off into the air. She’s an ugly, dumb cunt. Shut the fuck up. Turn around. Watch the game.”
Pretty bad.
Absolutely. It’s fun to josh around with opposing team fans in your section, and I’ve always enjoyed it when I go see the Eagles on the road. Your opinion may vary about when and where joshing turns to harassment, but it’s also pretty clear when someone is being a shithead. If that's all this was, it would not really have been news.
But there’s more.
Yes! I knew you brought me back for a good reason!
Caldwell worked at BCT Partners, which says it is on a mission to “harness the power of diversity, insights, and innovation to transform lives, accelerate equity, and create lasting change.”
Oh, that is good. I assume…
Yeah, the New York Post fronted the “DEI-focused” management consulting firm, though they didn’t have a good pun for it.
What’s the point of the Post, then? They didn’t even get to “D-E-Idiot”?
Not bad! The Post’s story was less DEI-focused than the one in the New York Fucking Times, which ran one titled “Misogynistic Taunts Cost Philadelphia Eagles Fan His Job at D.E.I. Firm.” It quoted the company’s website: “The site states that the group’s corporate culture is guided by the ‘South African principle of Ubuntu, translated as 'I am because we are' or 'humanity towards others.'"
Well, at least now I know what that Linux distro’s name means now.
I could never really figure out how to use Ubuntu. Want to know the reporter’s bio?
Hit me.
“Neil Vigdor covers politics for The Times, focusing on voting rights issues and election disinformation.”
This seems like neither of those.
Right. However, there is a better story with a more direct political connection to another Eagles fan. Philadelphia Inquirer political reporter Julia Terruso, firmly working inside her beat, has us covered here. The wonderful headline: “A Jan. 6 rioter who was identified by his Eagles beanie was granted court permission to attend inauguration.”
Did you see on BlueSky this week that Tom Scocca thinks the word “beanie” should be reserved for little propeller hats?
When did everyone suddenly start using "beanie" for a watch cap or stocking cap instead of for this, which is a beanie
— Tom Scocca (@tomscocca.bsky.social) 2025-01-14T13:42:19.103Z
Yeah! I would never have taken him for a prescriptivist. He suggests watch cap or stocking cap, but to me the latter sounds like one of those caps Mr. T inexplicably wore to ref a match at WCW Starrcade ’94: Triple Threat. I don’t think of a propeller helmet when I hear “beanie,” but I do think “knit cap” might be better. Sorry, Canadians: No one in the U.S. is going to start using toque.
Forcing Canadians to call them “beanies” sounds like something the next president would suggest.
Speaking of him: Donald Trump is expected to pardon convicted Jan. 6 rioters as early as next week. The wearer of the Eagles knit cap, Lee Giobbie, has only been charged. I have used my powers of deduction to determine that it’s likely his case will be dismissed. Court filings say Giobbie used a bullhorn to urge the crowd forward, at one point saying, “We need something to break the door down.”
What kind of coup attempt doesn’t bring its own battering ram?
An incompetent one. That might be a good defense.
Anyway, nice to know that he will completely get away with doing all that. How about Caldwell—did he get in any trouble?
He got fired! BCT Partners released a 219-word statement announcing it: “We condemn our former employee’s conduct in the strongest possible terms. This individual's conduct and language were vile, disgusting, unacceptable, and horrific and have no place in our workplace and society. Such conduct is not who we are and not what we stand for.”
Pretty rough to lose your job over something you said at a Philadelphia Eagles game.
A wild card round game, at that. It gets worse than losing your job, though! Longtime Eagles reporter Derrick Gunn had the info: “Big Dom has identified the guy and woman involved in this incident… the guy will be banned from future Eagles games.”
Big Dom! The Eagles body man who loves to be on TV!
Dom DiSandro got a new job description this year that put him in charge of “gameday coaching operations.” Jeff McLane reported it “was likely meant to prevent the league from being able to discipline him should there be another episode on the sideline with his involvement.” (In 2023, he shoved a 49ers player during a scrum.) He’s also, it seems, a P.I. for the team.
Makes sense. Any other bad news for Caldwell than getting identified by Big Dom?
There is one thing, which BCT Partners added in its statement: “At the same time, again to be true to our values, we can condemn the actions without condemning the individual. None of us deserve to be remembered for actions taken on our worst day. We have offered grace and support to our former employee.”
That’s both a nice, appropriate gesture and good marketing. If Defector really needs to commit to ubuntu…
Caldwell echoed that grace in his statement, but only to a point. Check out his apology (emphasis mine):
While attending an NFL game last Sunday to support my beloved Philadelphia Eagles, an incident occurred that I deeply regret. What began as banter with two Packers fans sitting near me escalated to something more serious, and I said things that were unacceptable. In the heat of the moment, I chose unforgiving words to address one of the fans, Ms. Ally Keller.
I want to sincerely apologize to Ms. Keller for those words, and to my wife, family, and friends, my former employer and colleagues, Packer fans, Eagle fans, the Philadelphia Eagles, the City of Philadelphia, and all who were offended. That said, there are two sides to every story. The video clip circulating online does not reflect the full context of what transpired, and my actions were not without provocation. I will live with this experience, and I am certainly paying a personal price. For those who don’t know me, this incident does not reflect my values or the respect I have for others and is not indicative of the person I am.
“I’m sorry to the whole city of Philadelphia,” followed by an Anyone Who Was Offended and a That Said, is a real instant classic in the apology genre.
I think so, too. Caldwell didn’t really expound on the provocation, but Philadelphia media tried to fill in the blanks on Keller and her fiancee, Alex Basara. Here’s Jon Marks of PHLY: “He was wearing a body camera to video stuff for content. He also has multiple GoFundMe’s to pay for his travel to Packers games etc. Need more info, but it feels like we’ve been manipulated by this dude.” And here’s Kyle Pagan, who himself carries around a camera to video stuff for content, of Crossing Broad: “But letting your girl take that much abuse and not doing anything about it? All for views. That doesn’t sit right with me either.”
Their comments combine to express what I consider to be a, and maybe the, classic Philadelphia media attitude: Don’t root for the visitors in our stadium unless you are prepared to escalate things when appropriate. In this case, it’s basically: If you’re going to film a Philly fan calling the love of your life a cunt, you should then also fight him.
That would have been pretty good content.
Fortunately, we do have a much better video from a hockey game in Philadelphia earlier this month. Two Toronto fans dodged punches from a Flyers fan during the Leafs’ 3-2 win on Jan. 7.
Now that’s a video a guy could lose his job over!
Right. But I bet you couldn’t help but notice what he was wearing: A backwards Philadelphia Eagles baseball cap.
Of course. They gonna win Sunday?
Of course.
Go Eagles.
Go Eagles.
