Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce are BACK! Chiefs stars make preseason debut in Jacksonville as Kansas City’s stars aim for fourth Super Bowl title
Bad news for NFL teams: Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce played well in the season opener against the Jaguars in Jacksonville.
The Kansas City Chiefs teammates celebrated their third Super Bowl victory in five years with a busy off-season that included European vacations, celebrity golf tournaments and a number of other professional activities.
But when it was time to put on the pads again Saturday night in Jacksonville, Mahomes and Kelce appeared to pick up where they left off in February, when the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.
The two future Hall of Famers played just one series, but Mahomes still managed to complete 3 of 4 passes for 27 yards. One of those throws went to Kelce, who hauled in a reception for seven yards.
Normally, head coach Andy Reid gives his starters two series before allowing reserves to play in the first practice game, but “Big Red,” as he’s known, was eager to see Kansas City’s second unit.
Patrick Mahomes (15) throws as Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Trevis Gipson defends
Travis Kelce warms up for a practice game against the Jacksonville Jaguars
Most notably, the Chiefs now have the backup of former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback and second overall pick Carson Wentz, who completed all four of his passes against his former coach Doug Pederson’s team on Saturday.
Mahomes played a total of six snaps in the 2023 season opener against the New Orleans Saints. He played a total of 11 plays against the Chicago Bears in 2022 and four snaps against the San Francisco 49ers in 2021.
Mahomes doesn’t mind not being able to play at the end of the summer, joking that he doesn’t mind getting hit by a defender during preseason.
“I always want to get hit, but not hard,” Mahomes said earlier this week. “So if I can just throw the ball and one of those defensive ends just wants to give me a little push, that’s all I need, so it’s fine.
“I enjoy playing in pre-season, honestly. Going in, we try to make sure we do things the right way and coming out, we try to keep everyone healthy.”
A Kansas City Chiefs fan holds a campaign sign for Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce in the stands prior to an NFL preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium
The bottom line is that the Chiefs want to evaluate players who are competing for a starting or roster spot.
“All these young guys, I love watching them compete,” Reid said. “The higher the draft picks, the more they get into it. A little bit better competition, so I want to see how they handle that.”
Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo agreed with Reid.
“Guys who haven’t had much time there, I want to see them,” Spagnuolo said. “You know all those young guys.
“I mean, I told them in the meeting, the guys that I hang out with that are here, I know which guys are tough and which guys are fake tough. I mean, I’m trying to figure out if guys are tough enough to play in this league and do the things that we need to do.”