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Kicker Harrison Butker says Chiefs have 'very Christian team ... The more Jesus the better'

By Cole Claybourn Feb 7, 2025
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker in the AFC Championship Game, Jan. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)

The past three Super Bowls have been decided by three points. The difference in the past two has been Harrison Butker field goals.

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After missing part of this season due to knee surgery, the veteran kicker has returned to play a key role in helping the Kansas City Chiefs reach Super Bowl LIX, including what proved to be the game-winning kick over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship Game.

And if the Chiefs are to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles and win an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl championship, Butker knows it could come down to his leg once again. That’s a lot of pressure on one player, but that’s where his faith in Jesus comes in.

“Whenever I feel super nervous or anxious, that’s definitely when I turn to God more than any other time,” he said Monday during Super Bowl LIX’s opening night. “I’m very thankful for that. In some ways, I view being an NFL kicker on this stage as a way that God has called me to turn to Him more often. I think if I wasn’t experiencing stress and anxiety and all these things, maybe I wouldn’t lean on Him.”

After joining the Chiefs in 2017, Butker has played in seven consecutive AFC Championship Games and made five trips to the Super Bowl. If the Chiefs win, it would be his fourth ring overall.

One of the most accurate kickers in the NFL, he kept the Chiefs in last year’s Super Bowl against the San Francisco 49ers with three field goals, including a 57-yarder in the third quarter and a 29-yarder at the end of regulation to force overtime. Kansas City went on to win, 25-22. And the year before, in Super Bowl LVII, Butker’s field goal with eight seconds left gave KC the win over Philadelphia.

But this season has brought its ups and downs. He made a 51-yard field goal as time expired to give the Chiefs a 26-25 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2, then followed that with three field goals the following week that proved to be the difference in a win over the Atlanta Falcons. He made another go-ahead field goal in the fourth quarter of a 16-14 win over the Broncos in mid-November that helped the Chiefs keep ground in the running for the AFC’s No. 1 seed.

After that game, though, Butker had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his non-kicking knee. The injury and subsequent surgery have affected his kicking mechanics and may have contributed to a missed extra point and field-goal attempt in consecutive weeks when he returned in mid-December.

He’s looked more like his typical self in the playoffs, however, making a trio of field goals in a divisional-round win over the Houston Texans, then hitting the go-ahead field goal against the Bills.

He’s accustomed to the bright lights of the Super Bowl, but the injury and surgery may still affect him some. Whether he succeeds or fails, he told Sports Spectrum ahead of Super Bowl LVII that his confidence and assurance resides in his identity in Christ.

“There might be things I have fears about. I might feel pressure, but I know I’m a child of God and He’s going to protect me,” he said. “That protection comes with some suffering, but I know that’s what’s best for me and I’ve got to accept that suffering and grow as best as I can with that.”

He added that his faith is “the most important thing” in his life and credits it for allowing him to be the father, husband and kicker he is. Butker has become well-known for being outspoken about his faith, and ahead of this year’s Super Bowl he praised other athletes, like those on the Ohio State football team, for also sharing their faith publicly.

“I don’t know what it was. Maybe it was post COVID, people were just wanting to lean on Jesus in a time of anxiety and pressure,” he said Monday night. “But it’s great to see — thinking of Ohio State, their whole team. I think it’s great that God is using a lot of people with their platforms to speak about Him.”

His own locker room has also become known for the same, led by team chaplains Marcellus and Stephanie Casey. Many players, coaches and executives in the Chiefs organization are publicly vocal about their faith. The team prays together before each game, and head coach Andy Reid leads the team in the Lord’s Prayer after each game, Butker said.

“I think we just have a very Christian team,” he said, adding. “The more Jesus the better.”

Kickoff for Super Bowl LIX from New Orleans is set for Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

>> Do you know Christ personally? Learn how you can commit your life to Him. <<

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