Crocky J becomes a social media sensation during Carson Steele's NFL debut with Chiefs

It only made sense that Carson Steele and Crocky-J made their NFL debut together.

Steele was 6 years old, missing both of his front teeth, when Crocky-J arrived at the front door as a gift from “Santa Claus” on Christmas Eve. Angela Steele immediately had her suspicions when she saw her husband, Joe, and his co-worker following the UPS delivery driver – carrying a box that was marked “Live reptile: this end up” – from the sidewalk to the door.

“I gotta see this,” the UPS driver said. A baby dwarf alligator, the soon-to-be-named Crocky-J, wiggled his way out of the burlap sack and took off sprinting down the hallway as a delighted Carson watched.

“He’s loved Crocky-J ever since,” Angela Steele said.

So began the legend of Crocky-J, Steele’s now 15-year-old, 5-foot and 100-pound pet. When Steele made his NFL debut on Thursday night for the Kansas City Chiefs against the Baltimore Ravens, the NBC audience was introduced to the former Center Grove star and 2020 IndyStar Mr. Football. The undrafted Steele was the first Chief to touch the ball, returning a kickoff for 28 yards and carrying the ball twice for three yards.

“It’s surreal,” said Angela Steele, who was in Kansas City with Joe to watch Thursday’s game. “I was watching the Super Bowl, watching Taylor Swift, and now he’s here. Never in my wildest dreams would I have expected it. But it’s just a dream, a roller coaster from the draft to the Chiefs. But he works so hard. He’s probably the hardest-working person I know.”

Steele’s story, from Center Grove to Ball State to UCLA to undrafted free agent to taking handoffs from Patrick Mahomes as a rookie in the NFL, is amazing enough. But back home in Greenwood, an even bigger TV star, albeit presumably unbeknownst to him, was starting to emerge: Crocky-J Steele.

Steele’s older sister, 25-year-old Kesslar Steele, was alligator sitting during the Chiefs-Ravens game. “I always get that task,” she said with a laugh. While Joe and Carson will pet him and Joe has been known to sing to him, Kesslar is content to set the water temperatures for him – they differ from day to night – and feed him his Gator chow.

“It’s pretty easy,” Kesslar said. “He’s a pretty docile alligator. I just probably don’t spend as much time with him as Carson does. But I don’t mind taking care of him.”

Kesslar was watching Thursday’s game on NBC with a mix of pride for her brother and astonishment that Crocky-J’s story had taken off like it had.

“I’m just so proud of him,” she said of Carson. “I knew this was always his dream. People would ask him what he wanted to do when he grew up and he would say, ‘To play in the NFL.’ And they would say, ‘But what else do you want to do?’ This was always the goal he was trying to accomplish.”

Angela said she had 42 texts she had not even opened yet by early Friday afternoon. Presumably, most of those are about Carson. But probably some about Crocky-J, too, after NBC’s broadcast featured Steele with his pet.

“Joe was always the crazy pet giver,” Angela said. “My rule was always ‘no snakes.’ So, he had to get creative and ordered an alligator online from the Everglades.”

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Angela said the Steeles have a permit for Crocky-J with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. The neighbors are aware of Crocky-J, who spends all of his time indoors. With Carson, 21, busy trying to build his NFL career, his pet gator is content to stay home in Indiana for now.

“I was shocked when I saw him that Christmas Eve,” Angela said. “I could have fallen on the floor when I saw him. I didn’t see myself with an alligator – not one bit. Mrs. Claus was not happy about it. But now he’s part of the family.”

Kesslar Steele will probably have a few more alligator-sitting duties on her plate during this NFL season. Dwarf alligators can live up to 50 or 60 years in captivity, which means Crocky-J’s story could have some bite for a long time coming.

“We joke that he’s probably going to outlive us,” Kesslar said.

Crocky-J’s story is just part of Steele’s rise. Tight end Travis Kelce, on his podcast prior to the Ravens’ game, said Steele is “a little bit more than a fullback.”

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“He’s athletic, and he can do some things with the ball in his hand,” Kelce said. “On top of that, he’s a big special teams guy. A ‘whatever you need me to do coach’ kind of guy.”

Angela said that is an accurate assessment of Carson’s outlook on his role.

“He wants to be a Swiss Army knife,” she said. “Do whatever they want him to do. He loves his teammates. And as a parent, that makes you happy.”

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649 .

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Crocky J becomes a social media sensation during Carson Steele's NFL debut with Chiefs