Ryan Caldwell has had a rough couple of days since he watched his Philadelphia Eagles knock off the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs and … well, that’s at least partly his fault.
Caldwell has been banned by the Eagles from all future games at Lincoln Financial Field and he was fired from his job as well after he was filmed calling a female Packers fan “an ugly dumb (expletive)” in the stands.
He finally broke his silence on Wednesday.
“While attending an NFL game last Sunday to support my beloved Philadelphia Eagles, an incident occurred that I deeply regret,” Caldwell said in a statement to the New York Post. “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, Eagles fans, the Philadelphia Eagles, the City of Philadelphia, and all who were offended,” he continued. “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.”
Caldwell was first identified by the Eagles and banned from future home games. Then his company, BCT Partners, a New Jersey management consulting firm, announced that the man — it did not name Caldwell — worked for them and had been fired.
“We, the management of BCT partners, have concluded the internal personnel investigation regarding an employee who was caught on a video outside of the workplace making highly offensive and misogynistic statements,” the statement read. “In keeping with our company values, which are firmly centered on respect, dignity, and inclusion, we have decided to part company with the employee. This separation is effective immediately.
‘We condemn our former employee’s conduct in the strongest possible terms,” the statement continued. “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.”
The company added that while it condemned the actions it did so without “condemning the individual.”
“None of us deserve to be remembered for actions taken on our worst day,” the statement continued. “We have offered grace and support to our former employee. We hope that he will grow and we all can learn from this deeply disturbing incident. That’s what real inclusion is and does. That is also who we are and what we stand for.
“We sincerely apologize to the victim and for the many ways in which these events already have impacted so many people,” the statement closed by saying. “We remain committed to gender equity and foster a culture of respect and dignity for all.”
Keller was attending the game with her fiancé, and she said Caldwell “started out with playful jabs,” but that it progressed to what unfolded on the video.
You can see that video, here, but beware that it contains adult language.
The Eagles defeated the Packers 22-10.
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