The NFL Debates the Perfect Peanut Butter to Jelly Ratio

A weather delay forced the halftime show during Sunday night’s game between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs to drag on way past the standard 15-20 minutes. And with the broadcasting team forced to kill time, they ended up unintentionally sparking an intense online debate about the proper ratio of peanut butter and jelly in a PB&J.

Players from both teams were given PB&Js during the extended halftime and according to NBC Sports’ Michelle Tafoya, a few Bills and Chiefs players complained to her during the delay that there was “too much peanut butter” on the sandwiches, with the reported amount being about 70 percent peanut butter and 30 percent jelly. From there, the team of Drew Brees, Tony Dungy, and Mike Tirico offered up their own PB&J takes.

While Tirico could not participate due to allergies, Brees was less focused on the proportion than whether it is grape jelly or strawberry jelly (like a true journalist, he would not reveal his preference). Of course, this time-wasting discussion became an all-out battle on Twitter, where folks had heated debates about the correct peanut butter and jelly ratio to create the perfect PB&J.

Many disagreed with the players, saying that 70/30 is the correct ration, including Barstool Sports’ Billy Football.

But many sided with the players, saying that 70 percent peanut butter was a bit much. Some lunatics even went as far as advocating for a 50/50 split.

A few tried to alter the argument altogether, saying that PB&Js are overrated and that jelly should be replaced by honey.

Is there a right answer to the question? Yes, of course there is and as a guy who had a peanut butter & jelly sandwich for lunch every day from kindergarten to my senior year of high school, I have it. First of all, anyone who advocates for a 50/50 peanut butter and jelly proportion is a lost soul who cannot be saved. That is way too much jelly that is guaranteed to soak the bread and making that kind of rookie mistake is frankly embarrassing if you’re over the age of 10.

Now, taking personal preference into account, you can run anywhere in the range from 60/40 (if you’re a jelly head) to 70/30 (if you’re nutty for peanut butter), with 65 percent peanut butter and 35 percent jelly being the platonic ideal. But the real key here is that you put peanut butter on both slices of bread, which allows the jelly to sit comfortably and deliciously in the middle without affecting the bread.